Salvation
by Spencebox
Summary: On one hand, she knew him as Michael- the kid with eyes that rivaled the sea and a heart that yearned to be loved. On the other hand, he was Langdon- the man who would take all or none to the Sanctuary, and looked at her as if she was a fly on his wall that needed to be crushed. Can't fit full summary! Ao3 SpenceBox account has full summary there! Sorry!
1. The End

_May 15, 2020 – The Day of the Apocalypse_

"-And remember students, your papers on the human effect in marine life is due this Sunday at 11:59 sharp. No, I will not accept papers at midnight or anytime you deem fit; I've given you all an ample amount of time to complete this paper, so I'm expecting all A's! Have a good weekend students and email me with any questions or concerns!"

The class of 39 environmental biology students all praised every deity for allowing Mr. Abernathy to shut his mouth and let them leave early, though he usually let them off with ten minutes to spare every Friday, so there was no true harm done.

"You got anything planned? Dylan's parents are out of town and I'm gonna _hit that up_." Julie March smiled at her friend Chloe's lustrous look at Dylan Parker's back; it was no shock that Chloe wanted to climb that boy like a tree and probably would this weekend.

"I mean, just look at him, you know I'm a sucker for a good back." Julie chuckled as her friends eyes followed Dylan out of sight, sighing when he turned out of the class. "But yeah, free house, me and him, _bone town."_

"Really, _bone town_? What're you, Jack Skellington?" Chloe fake laughed at Julie's stupid joke and both girls left the room, walking through the mostly empty hall.

"I don't really think you have the authority to make any joke whatsoever at me, seeing as you've probably never seen a cock in the first place and I've seen like four."

Of the two girls, Chloe was the one who had spent high school with skirts shorter than her buttcheeks and bubblegum popping between her teeth, while Julie had spent it in baggy hand me downs with her nose in a book. It was strange that they were even friends to begin with.

"How come every conversation with you ends with you calling me a dickless virgin? I have seen one before."

Chloe simultaneously scoffed and rolled her big brown eyes caked in eyeliner, "I hope you don't mean the mystery guy from high school that no one ever _actually_ met and also disappeared after like _a year_ because I'd hate to call you a liar this late in the day."

Julie shot daggers as Chloe smirked, "He _was _real. And maybe Dylan would go down on you if you weren't such a dick."

"Oh, he'll go down on me alright. I'll make sure of it." They were nearing the exit of the large community campus building. "But really, any plans this weekend? And no, going to that creepy Hotel does not count."

Julie adjusted her backpack strap and bit her lip, "My mom already asked me and I mean, It's not _that _creepy."

Chloe's arm shot out and stopped Julie in her tracks, "I'm sorry, are we talking about the same Hotel? The one where bunches of people always die and the last time I went with you I almost did? That one right?"

Julie pushed open the front door, ready to not exactly _deny _her friend that that was in fact true but merely defend her pride, but the chaos that both girls were met with put an end to that.

"What the _fuck_-?" Chloe was thrown to the ground with a grunt, Mr. Abernathy having thrown open the doors and running for his life. Julie helped her up and both girls flinched when a loud horn blared throughout the campus.

Was there a shooter? Had someone brought a bomb on campus? What the hell had happened?

A group of students came into view and were running past them when Chloe yelled at them, asking what was happening.

One of the guys in a Mario beanie turned to them with scared eyes and pointed his finger to the sky, "_They're coming! It's the end of the fucking world man- there's no where to go!" _

He fled off after his group, leaving them there with confusion on their faces. The end of the world?

They had so many questions; How? Why? _Now? _

It took a second for the absolute horrifying dread to set in, for the fear of death to fill her veins and leave her frozen. She didn't even know what was coming and if she'd make it home in time to kiss her mom goodbye and say all the things she'd never said.

"Julie, Julie- look at me _please_. We need to go. Now." She'd barely realized that tears had started streaming down her face, her friend digging those pretty pink manicured nails in the flesh of her arm and dragging her across the campus to the pretty purple convertible that picked up Julie for school every morning, but there would be no tomorrow morning would there.

Julie's trembling hand was reaching for the glossy silver handle of the pretty purple convertible when the door opened, slamming into her gut with a strength that shocked her.

Chloe was already inside and giving her a look that could kill a man twice, "Get in the car. _Now." _

The streets were like if Crazy Taxi had jumped out of her Dreamcast and had plagued the streets; it was utter chaos.

Abandoned cars littered the road and Chloe maneuvered them with excellent skill, and managed to not hit a single person, though there had been many running through the streets screaming for help from god, but no god was coming.

Julie's shaky hand reached for her phone and read the alert;

_Urgent Alert_

_Ballistic Missile Threat Inbound To Los Angeles_

_Seek Immediate Shelter. This Is Not A Drill._

A hand ripped the phone from hers and threw it in the backseat, "Don't look at your phone. No doubt its people you fucking hate saying sorry for being douche filled assholes to you now that they're gonna fucking be blown to pieces."

Chloe spoke with such rage spittle flew from her teeth. "We're gonna get you home and…. and…"

Sobs wracked the pretty 20's year olds chest and tears streamed down her make up caked face, teeth biting the red matte lipstick and tears smearing the pitch black mascara. Julie had never seen her cry, not even when James from 10th grade broke up with her and said her nose was too big.

"Chloe." Her hand found the shaking shoulder and squeezed lightly, "It's okay. Even if we don't make it, I'm glad I was with you."

"No, No, No." Chloe took her hands off the wheel and turned to her best friend Julie. "We're going to get you home, and you're gonna say bye to your mom."

"Chloe- _the car_!" But she didn't listen and instead hugged her friend close and the car seemed to steer itself closer and closer to her home.

"Chloe what's happening? Please Chloe, tell what you're doing?!" The hysterics were starting to set in as they skidded across her front lawn, car seemingly shutting down on its own.

Both girls had tears streaming down their faces and both of their chests felt like their hearts were going to implode. Chloe turned and held her friends chubby cheeks in her shaking hands, leaning forward and pressing a solemn kiss to each blob.

"_Never forget me Julie." _Chloe released the chubby cheeks and watched as shadows circled the car.

"_And never forget __**him.**__"_

And questions Julie had were ripped to shreds as black covered hands ripped open the car doors and dragged both girls out of their cars, Chloe seemingly giving in to the inevitable and Julie refusing to give up. She wasn't going to die without a fight.

She was placed in front of two people, both something out of a distant future sci-fi movie.

"Are you Julie March?" Her attention wasn't on the man who asked the question but instead on Chloe, who had been placed on her knees, a large gun pointed at her temple.

The pale man spoke up once more, "You, Julie March, have been selected by the Cooperative as one of the lucky few who will be taken to a safe location away from the blast."

That caught her attention enough to stop her struggles, "Not without my mom and Chloe."

He gave her a hard look. "Your genetic makeup makes you a prime candidate, and theirs do not."

"I don't understand, candidate for what? What the hell do you people think I'm gonna do?"

"Survive."

This was all some hellish nightmare; she must have fallen asleep in class and no one had woken her up yet. This couldn't be real, it just couldn't.

Julie sobbed out the same response, "_Not without them. Please." _ But they didn't listen, dragging her away to a grey heavy-duty van and locking her inside, away from the rest of the world, away from her mother, away from Chloe.

She screamed with every chord in her throat as a gunshot rang through the air and the van started moving. There was no doubt that they were leaving behind her friend's corpse on her mother's lawn, a mother she would never see again and a friend who died too soon.

This still felt like a horrible nightmare that she couldn't escape from, a demonic presence that had latched onto her soul and brought death and destruction in its wake, dragging her through pain and agony that seemed to have no end.

She wanted to die in that moment, wanted the blast to consume her whole and leave her with the people she loved. What was the point of survival if you had to do it alone?

_2 Weeks Later_

And as it turned out, this Survival wasn't something she'd be doing alone. She'd met Emily and Timothy at the initial bomb shelter, the three of them crying as the tremors had ran through the concrete slabs they'd laid upon.

They'd mourned for their families and loved ones, and even the ones they hated. It was a dark time for them, and there was no light at the end of the tunnel for 13 days.

But on the 14th day, they were thrown clothes and masks, told that anything out of place would lead to their death. Any resistance would lead to death, and that it was in their best interest to cooperate.

And so they did, piling on the large suits and making sure every tube for the gas mask was in place and stepped outside of the bomb shelter, following the men in black.

The world had turned grey and cold, had become a wasteland of death and grim tidings for the ones lucky to survive. All of the green had turned to black, and the sun had turned grey and dim. This was not a world that Julie wanted to be apart of, but she had no choice.

A carriage was waiting for them- horse drawn to be exact- and Julie, Emily, Timothy and a masked stranger sat in the carriage, rocking back and forth for hours on end, their destination unknown.

It was a miracle that the carriage came to a stop after so long, that the doors opened up to reveal more grey fog as a hand helped them out, and lead them forward.

It was a building like no other, if you could even call it a building. A spiraling black beacon of death was a better way to describe it. The four of them walked forward, past two people dressed in grey on their knees- no masks on either of them- with guns pointed to their heads.

The ring of the gunshot made her trip and fall to her knees- _Chloe's tear stained face ran through her head like a hurricane- _"C'mon, get up."

Timothy held out a hand to her and she shakily took it, balancing on two legs and moving forward, not looking back at the bodies, even though she wanted to, to make sure they weren't Chloe.

The decontamination process was threatening to say the least; the short stout woman who commanded their attention was someone who she would make sure to avoid. A few people dressed in outfits like the ones outside entered and were helping them get their suits off when a sound as steady as dropping water but heavy as iron entered the air.

The metal door opened to reveal a tall woman holding a candle.

"My name is Wilhemina Venable, and I'd like to welcome you to Outpost 3."


	2. The Beginning

_May 15, 2017- 3 years before the Apocalypse_

"-And remember class, that paper on Huck Finn is due next Thursday, beginning of class and not a moment later. I'll be out of town this weekend so any questions you have will just have to wait until Monday. Have a good weekend kids!"

Julie smiled to herself and packed up her folder and thick binder, stuffing them in the black backpack and hitching the heavy appendage onto her shoulder with a huff. She made her way out of the now empty classroom to give a warm smile to Chloe, her friend of only a year but really her only friend.

Chloe was nothing like Julie; Chloe liked to talk about all the things she liked to do with boys in the locker room and Julie liked to spend time with her mom at the Hotel Cortez, checking the book records of old inhabitants and walking through the empty halls.

She thought it was fun; it was exciting to touch the old wooden doors and feel like the queen of her own castle.

"Hey Chloe, how was class?"

Chloe flipped her hair over her exposed shoulder and smirked; "Got a B+ on my Chem paper and Mr. Johnson promised me some extra credit later this weekend."

Julie had stopped trying to talk her friend out of fucking teachers, seeing as she would typically run to the principal and get them fired/arrested. Chloe saw it as justice and Julie couldn't say she was wrong.

Though Julie never knew how Chloe always seemed to know which ones were the creepers; just luck she guessed.

Chloe inquired Julie about her weekend, which included doing absolutely nothing aside from staring out her window and wishing she had more friends. It only sucked sometimes to have close to no friends, but she just needed to be out of high school before she could really bloom.

"Well, my dad is picking me up, sure you don't need a ride?"

Julie waved her off, "Nah, I'm good. It's always fun to catch up on new music on my way home."

She'd never tell Chloe the real reason why she enjoyed her walks home. She'd come across the famous Murder House a year ago, and she loved it. It was a big luxurious house that was something out of the story books and it made her feel like a princess.

And the stories were true; there were dead people in that house. One of the girls, Violet, told her that if you died there, then your spirit was trapped forever, that you could never leave.

Violet had said the house killed her and her family, a ghost boy Tate had been responsible for her pain and suffering and that he too was still there. Julie had asked if the house was going to kill her, and a grown man had stepped forward and said she would never be hurt under his watch.

So every so often, Julie found herself at the steps of the Murder House, just like today. It was cloudy and she enjoyed the feel of the wind on her skin.

There was a kick to her step as she opened the doors, frowning when there were no ghosts in sight. Usually they would see her coming from the windows and come to greet her, so this was odd.

"Violet? Mr. Harmon? Hello?" There was no answer. "Tate? Anybody?"

Julie stopped in the living room, eyes widening at the sight of the dead woman on the couch, and the identical copy sitting right next to her.

"Ah, so you return. My children have told me much about you."

Julie tried to take a step back but something kept her in place. She couldn't run but she refused to back down. She was a ghost; she couldn't actually do anything to her- well… she _could _kill Julie, but Mr. Harmon said he would protect her."I don't believe we've met."

"No, we haven't. I'm Constance Langdon, Tate's mother." Constance turned to look at her corpse, "I couldn't live in this world anymore Julie. So I came here, where I can live on and be the mother I was meant to be."

Julie watched her pick up her amber glass and down it in one gulp, "Now tell me child, why are you here? Hm?"

Julie had no reason to lie. "Nothing in particular. The ghosts are kind to me and it makes me feel less lonely."

And that was the truth, they were like friends that actually found her interesting and were always there.

But Constance clearly disagreed. She threw her glass against the wall and stood on shaky legs, stumbling towards Julie's frozen form and gripping the smaller girls shoulders with her sharp nails.

Julie should've been able to smell the alcohol on her breath but then again, Constance was dead, but she could sure as hell feel those nails digging into her shoulders.

"You need to get out of this house and never come back." Constance shoved her away and sprawled Julie on the floor. "I see the same evil in you that I saw in my grandson."

Julie watched as what looked like realization entered the old woman's eyes and suddenly her old aged face was much too close, though instead of anger, her eyes were full of pain.

Those nails lifted up Julie by her dark thick sweater and whispered in her ear, "_He will find you, and you must run. Save yourself Julie March." _

She didn't understand what she meant, or what she was supposed to do. Who was her grandson? And what kind of evil was in him? Or better yet… what evil was in _her_?

There were so many things she wanted to ask but both women froze at the sound of footsteps.

"_Grandma?" _

She was there, on the floor of the living room with Constance leaning over her, and in the next moment she was outside the kitchen door, watching it slam shut and lock her out. She wasn't stupid enough to wait around and see Constance's grandson; that was an evil she was better off not knowing.

She sprinted to the street and the whole way home, hiding away in her room and curling up on her bed.

Julie wasn't going to lie and say that hadn't made her scared. Her hands splayed out in front of her eyes, tracing the lines that were meant to tell your future. Did her lines say anything about an evil in her life?

A ding from her pocket had her fingers scrabbling to get her phone, a message from Chloe reading ' you home?'

She texted back a quick 'yeah' before stuffing her phone under her pillow and gazing out the window. The house next door had been empty so long, she hoped no one bought it anytime soon, they'd think she was a creep for always watching.

But behold, two months later the house sold, and instead of having the view of a dark empty room, there was a boy in there now. She never really got a good view of him, and she never saw him leave the house. It was like he didn't exist.

"Hey mom?"

"Hm?"

"Have you met the neighbors? I think there's someone my age in the room across from mine. Have you seen him?"

Jessie March looked at her daughter with a smile that could rival the beating sun, "Of course I have dear. His name is Michael and his Aunt is Miriam. Lovely woman Miriam, bit hard on the face but I think I might invite her to Lydia's book club this weekend, you know, really show her the neighbors. And if she says yes then maybe you and Michael can get to know each other. How does that sound?"

Julie picked at her eggs and ignored her mom's questioning gaze, "What if he doesn't like me? Or what if I say something stupid?"

Jessie March scoffed and bit into her crunch toast square, "Well, just thinking that he wouldn't like you is quiet stupid, and I swear to you Julie, that boy will _adore _you."

"Whatever you say mom." Her mother took a sip of cold OJ, "I'm just saying baby, you can't just sit around and wait for Chloe every weekend to drag of to do something ridiculous. You need other people in your life."

Her daughter was silent as she finished off her fluffy white eggs, "And who knows, you may need him just as much as he needs you."

"Whatever you say mom." Jessie stood up and patted her Julie on the head, ruffling the already messy strands of brown hair. Her heels clicked as she took both of their plates and put them in the sink, and made a sneer at the overflowing trashcan.

"Before you go can you empty the trash? Don't want to get rats like last time."

Last summer when Jessie March had left town for a week on a Business venture in Seattle, Julie had had the house to herself and had not once taken out the trash, leading to an infestation in the basement and kitchen cupboards. They'd had to call an exterminator and Julie had been grounded for a week.

"Sure thing." She stood and stretch, rubbing her full belly before grabbing engorged trash bin and hauling it out the front door, groaning at the bright rays of sun that hit her skin. She hated the warmer months, wishing that the world would stay cold.

A huff of gratitude left her lips when the bag was officially dropped in, the lid closing with a slam. Her eyes watched the empty streets, finding no one out and not a single car in any driveway. A thought that perhaps there was a farmers market close came and went, it was odd.

"Would you be a dear and get me some lemonade?"

"_Yes Ms. Mead." _

Julie March turned in time to watch the front door to the neighbor's house close, leaving her eyes to turn to the short stout dark dressed woman who was without a doubt Miriam

Mead.

She looked mean, the dark lipstick and pitch black hair made her think of everything dark in the world packed into one woman. Miriam Mead raised her hand in a wave, "Hey Neighbor!"

Julie gave a shy wave and sprinted as fast as an Olympian into the house, shutting her own door just as the sound of the neighbors door opening echoed through her ears. Her hands shook, her ears were ringing and she ignored her moms questioning look as her legs carried her to her room.

The lock on the door clicked shut and her body shook, but instead of any fear or uncertainty it was a hot burning desire that rang through her lower half.

She groaned and moaned "Are you _kidding me?" _

Masturbation was such a Chloe thing; her friend had given her a bright pink vibrator last year and said she needed to loosen up once in a while. It was still in its original box in the closet on the upper shelf, hidden from sight.

But out of sight yet not out of mind and Julie scrambled to her closet and thanked the heavens that it came with batteries. She scrambled to get off her sleep pants and panties- shirt and bra as well cause her nipples were crazy sensitive- and placed herself near the headboard.

The pink vibrator was thick and short and the box mostly talked about clitoral stimulation, and she clicked the power button onto the lowest setting. It was a nice hard buzz that had her biting her lip, running the vibe along her hardening nipples and letting out a soft moan. Her soft fingers pinched the other one with a groan.

She would never tell a soul that she wished a man would lean over and suck her tits until they were raw and her voice was hoarse with pleas for him to stop but he would never give in, taking everything she had to offer. She wondered if Michael would suck her tits till they bled.

The vibrator skimmed her love handled tummy and along the thin stretch marks, eventually reaching her glistening pussy. There was very little hair; Chloe had gotten her into shaving.

Julie never did this and she should've taken it slow, but instead she placed the head of the buzz right on her clit, arching up at the buzz of pleasure streaming down her legs. It was electricity, the power of the gods were striking her very core and making her weak. Would Michael feast on her as if she were his last meal?

Why was he in her thoughts, why could she see behind her eyelids a man with hair as gold as sun but eyes as dark as night, watching her with a lust she'd never know? Was this Michael? Was he a sinner standing before a sin?

Her finger clicked to the next setting and she tried not to scream; it just felt so _fucking good. _

Her eyes closed once more and he was there again, closer this time, close enough to touch. Her hands wanted to reach out and feel him, but her bones were stuck in place, her thighs wide and open for him to take.

"_Please, touch me." _He smirked at her and moved like wind, his touch being all too real. Her eyes opened and a scream nearly left her throat at the blonde haired boy looming over her, mouth suckling her nipple as if she was his last meal.

He was real- he had to be- and his hand ripped the vibrator from her pussy and moved down her body, gazing at the glistening wetness before him. It was his to taste, only his.

This time she did scream when his tongue circled her clit, nibbling on the sensitive bud as if it were a pesky grape attached to a vine. He hungered for her sweet cunt, wanting her juices to flow into a cup that only he could drink from. He craved her.

"Mich-Michael, please, please." He didn't relent, feasting with a fury that rivaled a rabid dog, hands holding her plush thighs in place as he took everything she had to offer.

She was nearing her release when he pulled back, forcing a sob from her throat, why was he being cruel when she was so close?

Michael crawled up her body and gazed at her red bitten lips with lust in his eyes, wishing this would never end. But all good things did.

She came with a scream as he bit into her left nipple with a pain blossoming across her chest. Tears fell as her body collapsed on her sheets; bleary eyes watching the golden haired boy wipe away her watery cheeks.

He placed a kiss on her cheek as her eyes shut, hand caressing her soft warm cheeks with an adoration she would soon come to crave with every breath.

According to her clock, Julie awoke 3 hours later, fully clothed and under the covers. A gasp echoed the room as the memories came back; Michael had been in her room and he'd touched her in ways she'd never been touched.

But had that been real? It couldn't have been…

"Ow…the hell?" Her hand pulled down her sleep shirt, eyes widening at the massive bruising surrounding her left nipple.

It had been real, and the worst part was, she craved more.


	3. Purple or Grey

Wilhemina Venable lead Timothy, Emily and Julie through a tall tunnel that let to an open area, lit by a large fire that showed off just how massive the downstairs was.

Timothy inquired as to whether it was a fall out shelter, and Venable responded in a bleak tone, "It is now. For many years it served as an exclusive boys school."

Julie was tempted to ask what kind of boy's school was this deep underground and this strangely creepy, but Emily beat her to it, "What kind of boys school is subterranean?"

"The Cooperative, to whom we owe our eternal gratitude, took ownership and converted it once they realized what was coming."

"The Cooperative knew the bombs were gonna drop and they didn't make more? Try to save more people?" One look from Venable had Julie shutting her mouth.

"The Cooperative has plans far beyond the temporary cleansing fire of the bomb." She led them through the main room downstairs, going through another passageway that led to a spiraled set of stairs. Julie would've been amazed under any other circumstances at the neat architecture.

"The Cooperative is not made up of nations or armies." She paused at the base of the spiral. "It is a collection of the dozen greatest minds mankind has to offer. The visionaries."

Julie couldn't help herself, "Are you apart of the Cooperative?"

Venable ignored Julie's question, and truthfully Julie hadn't expected an answer, in turn explained exactly why they were there. She said technology was the problem, had led people to believe that they were equal, and it made Julie uneasy.

Venable sounded like one of those radicals who still believed in slavery and segregation and from the way there were people dressed in grey cleaning the floors, this would be a very uncomfortable lifestyle. Who even decided who got live in luxury and who scrubbed the toilets? Venable? The Cooperative?

She led the three of them into one room, "You are a purple." The three of them were confused as Venable opened up a closet full of Victoria style purple dresses.

"The elite, the worthy." Venable pierced Julie with a glare. "Those chosen to survive."

Emily walked into the closet and pulled out a purple coat, scoffing at its ugliness. "I'm supposed to wear this shit?"

"In the Outpost, everyone must know their place." Once again, she met Julie's eyes. "The purple's wear purple, the Grey's, Grey."

"Who are the Grey's?" Venable called them the worker ants and said that they were here to serve, claiming they were grateful for the opportunity. It made her stomach turn to hear another human speak about others in such a degrading way.

Venable led Timothy to his room; closet full of purple suits and said much of the same that had been said to Emily before stepping out, leaving Julie alone with her. It was an awkward few minutes of silence.

"Am I a purple too?"

Venable's face flickered in the light of the candle, "If it were up to me, you would have been left to the blast." The terrifying woman tapped her cane twice. "If it were up to me, you'd be a grey."

Julie held her breath, lungs whimpering for air but fear kept her still. Would she really throw her out?

"But lucky for you, the Cooperative is responsible for your survival. Now come, you should get settled in."

The only sound that echoed through the underground cavern was Venable's cane, taking her to a room that was much out of place from the others, as well as much larger. It felt so foreign, like attaching a prosthetic limb that was much more deserving of someone else.

There was a queen sized bed, a roaring fireplace, a massive closet which most likely held more purple clothes, and three couches that looked great for leisuring. But how did one leisuring when the world had burned and there were people deemed under her nose. It made her sick to be given all this.

Venable was on her way out when she spoke up, "The house rules are simple; you will address me as _Ms. Venable, _you may never leave the building and if you do you will not be allowed back inside."

Venable tapped her cane, "Copulation of any kind is forbidden." Not allowing sex in the end of times was pretty fucked.

"We dress for dinner, you'll find your dinner wear on the left side of the armoire. Cocktails in the music room at 6:30, be prompt."

She slid the door open; "There's no excuse for tardiness when there's nothing to do." Julie flinched when the door slammed shut, eyes watering and lip trembling.

* * *

So this was her life now; living in Outpost 3 under the cruel thumb of _Ms. Venable_, following her rules and never seeing the cold light of day again. No one could blame her for wetting her pillow with tears.

Julie March left her room at 6:20, donned in a purple dress that belonged more in a 19th century novel than in 2020, but at least it was comfy so she couldn't complain. A grey was a few feet away from her door and led her to the lounge hall, never making eye contact or speaking a word.

It was unsettling to say the least. But even worse were the people she was greeted to in the lounge area.

There was Gallant, a white haired flamboyant man-child who hated the repetitive song on the radio and had a liking for Coco's hair, as well as being Evie's grandson. And as for Evie, she was a bitter old woman who thought she deserved this so called 'Salvation' because she attended the Oscars with Natalie Wood.

There wasn't much to say about the others; A white guy named Stu laid in the arms of his lover who's name she still didn't know, and a grey named Mallory complained to Coco that she deserved to be a purple.

Emily and Timothy came in after her and sat close, staring at the each other. So this was the end of the world, the last of civilization in one neat little box.

Gallant was making a fuss over Coco's strange up do, and once more complaining about the song on the radio that played 24/7 and never changed or stopped.

A middle aged black woman who introduced herself as Dinah Stevens came near Timothy and tried to make conversation, while Gallant moved from Coco to asking Emily if anything was happening outside.

"It's all gone. Everything." None of them looked shocked, aside from Stu who couldn't believe the word was dead in just two weeks.

Dinner was an awkward affair consisting of gelatin cubes with enough nutrients to keep the body alive, and conversation that made her want to tear her hair out. At least until Gallant grew brave enough to address her, as no one else had.

"So why do you get a special room? Everyone else is on the second floor but I saw you come from downstairs. In fact, what makes you a purple and not a grey?"

Gallant must have realized he was being to forward and backtracked, "Not trying to insult you or anything-"

Stu muttered "too late" and Gallant shot him a look before addressing her again, "I'm not saying you _don't _deserve to be purple cause this whole system of who does and doesn't is fucked in the ass, but just like, why you? I could do so much more with a bigger room."

A lot of questions from a small-minded idiot, but she wasn't mean enough to say that aloud. "To be honest, it's just as surprising to you as it is to me. " There wasn't much else to say, so she stayed quiet, ignoring Evie's glare at her side.

Julie used her fork to cut up her cube in four pieces, eating each one as slow as she could, even if the hunger was gnawing at her gut. A laugh nearly erupted when Coco ate hers in one bite and complained aloud that she wanted more.

"Fuck this bullshit!" Julie wanted to snort as Coco stood and spoke to the whole table, "With all the thought that went into this place, they don't have a _single _bag of _Pirate's Booty _in the pantry_? _For a hundred million dollars a ticket, I expect goddam _Gordon Ramsay_ in the kitchen cooking us real food!"

Julie dropped her head when Ms. Venable came into sight, cane clacking on the ground. It was no shocker when she slapped Coco clean across the face, but the thing that did shock Julie was the short stout woman who was next to Ms. Venable.

It was akin to being slapped herself; she _knew_ her.

At least, she _thinks_ she did. Julie bites her lip in irritation, as she can't place just _where _she's seen here. It was like knocking on your own front door but no one answers, or like an autobiography with empty pages.

Her eyes closed and she traveled through her thoughts, avoiding all the happy memories of life before two weeks ago, and it was as if there was a fog in her brain, scrambling a few certain things she so desperately wanted to see.

"Are we boring you?"

Her eyes jolted open to find the whole table watching her, though the short stout woman was the one who had spoken to her. Julie shook her head and the stout woman gave her a soft smile that made her feel like a kid again.

Ms. Venable spoke of a carrier pigeon that had come, a message stating the there were in fact three other Outposts, but they had been overrun. That life outside these walls was nothing more than rotting corpses and hungry cannibals. They were it.

It was stomach curling to hear that after only two weeks like had all but been destroyed outside these walls; that there was nothing out there was cannibals and, she quotes, 'canker puss monsters.' Julie hoped she would never have to meet them.

A few other people walked in, dressed in black, and the tallest one leaned down to whisper in the stout woman's ear.

"We have a problem."

They had taken Stu and Gallant, claims of them having radiation spikes and Julie only assumed they were dead. They'd been allowed to leave after the two men had been dragged away, and Julie nearly vomited up her cube, but knew it would only hurt her in the long run.

She changed into her nightwear and paced the room, fire reflecting shapes on the wall. It was too early for sleep, and talking to the others would be as bad as being alone. There were no books in here and asking Ms. Venable if there was a library seemed too scary an option.

Were they supposed to do this for the next 18 months until they ran out of food, then what? _Starve? Go crazy?_

A sorrow filled chuckle filled the room but she refused to shed any more tears. It was acceptance or die.

A knock on the door brought her from her reverie, and Julie quickly slid it open, brows furrowing in confusion when no one was on the other side. Who the hell ding dong ditched in a damn fallout shelter?

"Hello?" There were no Grey's, no Purple's, _no one_. She was stepping back in when a flash from the corner of her eye had her sharply turning to the left, eyes widening at what she saw a few feet away.

It was a body covered in black latex, head to toe and in a pose that felt insanely nauseatingly threatening. "Can I help you?"

The figure stood there and this was something out of a horror movie to be honest. Only she would stand and talk to whatever the hell it was. "Hey!"

She yelled for it when the figure turned and walked away. Julie looked around, was she supposed to follow him? Or was this just some trick they were all playing on her for shits and giggles? This was such a scenario that you saw in movies like Scream, where you're yelling for the girl to run away from the killer, but in Julie's case, death might be better than life at Outpost 3.

With one last look at the much too large and painfully clean room, she closed the door and followed the figure.


	4. Worship

_July 12, 2017_

Jessie March had asked out Miriam Mead last Tuesday, inviting her to a ladies night out- which would most likely consist of having more than a few cocktails at the nearest high end bar and complaining about dead beat husbands that got more than they deserved.

Miriam had told her that she was busy that night, but the following Wednesday would be perfect. And Wednesday had arrived with a shockingly breezy day, the obliterating heat of the sun being clouded by the foggy sky.

Julie stood nervously in the center of her room, nimble fingers fidgeting as her eyes darted around the place she called home. It had felt slightly unsafe since her dream about Michael- uncertain if he had actually been there or not.

The burn on her left nipple had stayed for days, almost a week and now a small scar still remained.

There was no denying the unforgettable pleasure that had run through her veins at the feel of his tongue eating her out, and the pleasure and pain he'd brought as his teeth had turned her soft dusty nipples a harsh red.

She hadn't touched herself since, had thrown away the vibrator and vowed to keep him from her thoughts whenever she craved an orgasmic relief. But it was hard to not think about him, or the way his touch had driven her crazy.

Was it insane to want someone you'd never met? If so, then she belonged in the Looney bin for life.

"Are you ready Julie? It's time to head over."

Jessie March watched her daughter bite her lip with a nervous look, "Honey, are you still nervous? Please don't stress yourself out, you're just going over to meet Michael and hang out until Miriam and I have had our fun. Won't be more than two hours."

Julie nodded at her mom's words before stepping out of her room, closing the door and following her mom down the stairs. They shut off all the lights and stepped out into the brisk night air, locking the door and walking across the lawn.

Julie needed to remember to breath; why was she so nervous? It was just some kid her age who was either going to be another boy who was full of shit or just another guy. And yet, she didn't even believe herself in saying that Michael from next door was just _some guy. _

"Don't forget to smile." Jessie rang the doorbell and both March women gave off smile brighter than sunlight. There were a few beats were they simply stood and waited with bright smiles and baited breath.

The door swung open and Julie felt her heart plunge into her stomach; so this was Michael Langdon.

He looked younger than she pictured- _could remember- _but it didn't faze her. His golden hair was curled around the crown of his head and he donned a yellow shirt with blue jeans, bare feet standing on the wood floor with creamy toes that tapped an uncertain beat.

But his face was what caught her, what caused an uptick in her rapidly beating heart and the smile already present to become wider. Those deep sea blue eyes- they were as if the ocean waves had become entrapped in a sphere and placed into the perfect orbs to see the world.

The golden locks, the blue eyes, and the smile that could bring the world to its knees were enough to have her biting her lip in want, a familiar tingle in her lower half making her ache.

"You must be Michael, I'm Jessie March, and this is my daughter Julie. Is Miriam ready to go?"

Michael used every will in his body to turn his eyes away from the decadent and haunting beauty that was Julie March, and went to find Ms. Mead. His fingers itched to grip the flesh of her cheeks and feel the warmth of her supple chest; he wanted to _**consume **_her.

Did he have any idea where this want came from? Not really.

But oh Satan, he could still taste her sweet cunt on his lips and hear her cries for a release that no other could give her. His steps faltered as he neared Mead's room, a deep desire for his next-door neighbor coursing through his veins.

"Was that them Michael? Can't believe you talked me into this shit show- _whoa _boy are you okay?" Miriam Mead walked out of her bedroom looking just as dressed in black as normal, but donned a pair of petite heels that clicked as she walked. She marched over to Michael when he keeled over.

He shook her off, "No, no, It's nothing. I'm alright."

She looked like she didn't believe him but he insisted, walking with her to the front door and feeling a sense of relief with Julie in sight once more. He had this overwhelming urge to grab and hold her in his arms, to stuff her in his room and keep her for himself.

Michael had never felt like this before, but now wasn't the time to worry.

"Oh Miriam, you look lovely. You ready?" Miriam Mead patted Michael on the back and shot Julie a look that made her cringe.

"Have fun you two. We'll be back soon."

The door shut with a moderate slam and they both heard the two women drive off into the night.

It was silent between them, Michael wanting to hug her and Julie wanting to fall to her knees for him. But neither things happened, and instead Julie smiled at Michael.

"So, what do you have planned for us?"

His eyes lit up at her inquiry of how they would be spending the few hours they had before the two older women returned, and he eagerly reached forward and plucked her hand that had been laying at her side, leading the way.

He took her the kitchen and sat her down in a chair, moving to the fridge and puling out two plates, each having half corn half bologna sandwiches.

"We don't have that much, but the corn is good." She hadn't had corn in ages but ate it with a smile though avoided the bologna, she wasn't a fan of deli meat. He ate with eagerness, but his eyes watched her and smirked around a mouthful of meat when her cheeks turned dark under his unfaltering gaze.

When they finished he took their plates and eagerly took her soft hand again, leading them down a hall and up one set of stairs, stopping at what must have been his room.

The door was a deep blue and her brows furrowed at the upside down cross resting on a hook. She didn't have time to question it when he yanked her in with a surprising force, shutting the door behind them.

His room looked no different from what she could see from her window; a twin sized bed with blue sheets, a nightstand with a lamp that donned a yellow shade, and a white closet near the door.

It was barren for a teenager, or maybe she just like material goods. He watched her eagerly, "You're the first girl I've ever had here."

It shocked her but it didn't show on her face, "Well aren't I the lucky one."

He plopped himself on the bed and watched her, patting the open space to his left. She sat next to him, eyes darting between their touching thighs and his sea blue orbs.

"So, is Ms. Mead your mom? You don't really share any-" She motioned to his face and he smiled.

"She took me in when my grandma died. She's my family, she'll always be there for me." He spoke with such certainty that it made her soften.

They were silent for a minute, Julie looking around the room to try and start a conversation, but that was more than a little difficult.

"So what do you do for fun?" He bit his lip and stared into her eyes, "I'm usually with Ms. Mead; she keeps me company."

"Well what about when Ms. Mead isn't here? Then what do you do?"

He bit his lip and fiddled with the end of his shirt, "Sometime I try to talk to my father, other times I look at you."

She watched his look at her, waiting for a response. It was surprising that the fact that he watched her didn't frighten or creep her out, "How do you look at me?"

"From my window. I can see you sleeping at night and sometimes you're with another girl." His voice grew soft and wary, "Please don't be mad."

Hell, why _wasn't _she mad? He just admitted to watching her from his window and yet this invasion of privacy didn't scare her. In fact, it made her feel strangely warm at the fact that he watched her.

"I watch you too sometimes."

The two teens stared at each other with wide eyes and unsure thoughts. Michael was the one to make the first move.

His slightly shaking hand reached up, thumb tracing her bottom lip, "M-May I touch you?"

Her eyes drifted from his gaze to the wandering thumb, watching as it swiped across her damp bottom limp, a wetness appearing on the pad of his thumb that he promptly brought it his mouth for a taste. It was sensual to say the least.

They continued staring, but Michael broke the silence first. "Would you be my friend?"

Julie eagerly nodded and Michael gave her a sweet child like smile. They both didn't know it yet, but they were meant to be, and this was only the beginning.

* * *

"Why do you have to go?"

Julie looked in the mirror and shot Michael's reflection a deadpan look, going to back to applying her lipstick.

She had Michael had become closer over the coming weeks; she had found he would show up exactly ten minutes after she came home from school, and would sit on her bed with his nose in her pillow, listening to her describe her day with wide attentive eyes.

He didn't go to school, and she knew better than to grill him as to why he sat at home all day, didn't he get lonely? Why didn't Ms. Mead make him get an education like everyone else her age?

"Because I made a promise to my mom and the desk clerk Liz that I would visit twice a month, every other Saturday and as you can tell, its Saturday."

"But _I _want you here." She capped up her mascara and turned around, placing her hands on her hips. "Why don't you just come with me? I could use the company, it's a pretty creepy Hotel."

Her bare legs walked across the floor to the dresser, eyes searching for a pair of pants, feeling his eyes on her ass the whole time. They weren't entirely innocent friends; sometimes Michael would plant his face in her breasts and lay there for a bit, or like right now, he would stare at her with the lust of a teenage boy.

After dancing into her tight jeans she turned around, Michael red in the face and quickly looking away.

There was this strange innocence to Michael that made her feel… well, she couldn't really explain it. It was like seeing in warm and cold colors, and Michael was just so _warm. _He was a blanket on a cold day and a heat she felt to her core.

He was silent at her question she asked again, "C'mon, if you come with me then I can show you all the creepy murder rooms. I feel like that's right up your alley." A wiggle with her brows was enough to have Michael up and crossing the floor, standing in front of her with a look of wonder on his face.

"Murder rooms?" She nodded and he bounced on the balls of his feet, giving her a smile that warmed her heart. He stopped moving around enough for them to be face to face, his heart beating out of his chest and her own fingers itching to entangle with hers.

The bedroom door opening had Julie pulling back, a frown falling on Michael's face as Jessie March walked in, "You ready Jules? Wanna beat the traffic, oh- are you coming along Michael?"

"Sure Mom, we'll be downstairs in a sec." Jessie March nodded at her daughter and took her leave, not shutting the door.

"Why did she call you Jules?" Michael had understood her name to be Julie, and she shrugged it off as she sprayed a cloud of perfume and walked through it.

"No reason, just a nickname. She says I'm the family jewel, so Jules."

Michael thought she was a jewel, a shining diamond in the rough that he wanted to carry with him always. "Can I call you Jules too?"

She held out her hand and he took it eagerly, "Of course. I see no reason why you can't." The two walked out of the room, closing the door softly and trotting down the stairs with intertwined fingers.

* * *

Miriam Mead plated up two bowls of pasta, the one for Michael being bigger than hers- he was a growing boy; more food would be good for him.

"And how was your day?" Miriam sat his bowl down and watched with a smile as he said his evening prayer.

"Bless us Dark Lord, for these thy gifts that we are about to receive…" He finished his prayer and they both dug in, Michael smiling at his Aunt.

"Did you know there are dead people in the Hotel Cortez? I was there today with Jules and her great grandfather followed her." Mead watched as he bit into a large meatball. "I should've sent him to my father, but he protects her from the evil ones."

"Sounds like a good day then." He nodded and inquired about her day, smiling as she rambled about meeting women in the neighborhood, planning out future victims and such. His good mood dropped when he remembered a bit of information that he required from Ms. Mead.

He dropped his fork with a ding and gave Mead a dead serious look.

"Do you know if it's her? If she's the one?" Miriam sat down her fork and gave him a smile, "Only you can answer that Michael."

A pain in her throat had her gasping for air, wide eyes watching as he stared at her with unaltered rage. He rarely took his anger out on her.

"I wont ask you again Ms. Mead." He released her throat and she told him the truth, which is she really didn't know, that only he could answer that for himself.

"Fine." The table collapsed in on itself when he pushed away from it, running upstairs and shutting his door. Michael shed his shirt and opened his closet; hands gripping the jagged blade Miriam had gifted him shortly after he'd come into her care.

He had only done this once, but he had come back and received the answers he had needed. And right now, he had to know if Julie March was the one who was meant to be by his side when he burned the world, the one who would be his light in the eternal darkness. Some deep part of him knew it was her; that just by seeing her warm smiles and tasting her sweet cunt that _she was. _

But he had to be sure; so he took the jagged blade and started speaking,

"_May you rise from the void, Father. May your darkness guide me." _He flinched as the blade dug into his wrist, blood flooding out. He started digging up and up, letting the river flow.

"_Power in Satan to overcome my weaknesses." _ He mimicked the incision on the other arm.

"_Power in your name, to be strong within." _It always hurt to let the blood flow, and he fell to his knees as it pooled around him.

He fell to his knees when he heard the whispers around the room, penetrating his mind with knowledge no man could give him. His fingers now covered in blood and mind barely aware moved his hands in sync to draw a bloody pentagram beneath his knees.

Tears streamed down his face as pain and pleasure became one, a dark shadow erupting before him.

"_I seek your guidance. I thought it wasn't true, but she lives. __**I found her, she's here." **_The whispers grew stronger, but he needed more_. "I beg for your wisdom."_

He could hear the shadowed figure as clear as day, but he needed to see. "_Please, Father! Open my eyes!"_

He slumped forward, the blood loss making him weak- such a _human_ trait- but that cold dark hand lifted him up and told him everything he needed to hear. His father told him the truth- that Julie March would stand by his side and that her existence was key to his survival, the world's end, _everything. _

He grew stronger now, felt his body replenishing the missing blood as his father healed him, ready to return to the depths of hell once more, but not without a farewell from his only son.

The words left his bloody lips like a sweet song,

"_Ave Satanas"_

Julie March shot awake in her bed, chest heaving with a breath that she desperately craved. It took a few moments for her heart to calm down to a normal rate, fingers clenching her covers tightly. Her eyes darted around every corner of the room, searching for anything out of the ordinary- or out of that nightmare.

A quick turn of the head with a peek out her window showed Michael's lights off. She fell back against her bed with a huff; it had just been a dream. But instead of simply falling back asleep she reached for her phone on the nightstand, clicking it on and opening Safari.

Her fingers typed in the words 'Ave Satanas' and her eyes bulged out at the Google official definition of the Latin words she'd heard in her dreams.

_Hail Satan_


	5. Arrival

Going into the unknown would scare anybody, and Julie was no exception.

It was dark and chilly in the barren corridors of Outpost 3 and Julie really wished she had put on socks- though they were bare threads that wouldn't give much warmth.

There were no Grey's in sight, and it was almost calming to have no one around. She had always been a bit of a hermit, so she enjoyed the silence. But she wasn't alone, was she.

She had been following him- she wasn't sure it was a _him, _but it was easier than calling him _it_\- for around five minutes when the familiar tapping of Ms. Venable's cane echoed through the hall.

There were no rooms to hide in, seeing as they were on the first floor and all the rooms were on the second, and her heart rate grew faster as the noise grew closer.

She let out a small yelp when a black hand reach forward and pulled her into the wall, latex hand covering her mouth and pulling her against its strong body. She felt his front press into her back and felt the deep inhale he took when his head found the curve of her neck.

She started to squirm when the light from Venable's candle lit the dark hallway in the corner of her eye, knowing that being caught would be a death sentence. The squirming intensified as tears started to pool in her eyes, but the black creature simply would his other hand around her midsection, fingers sliding down and digging into her pelvic bone.

She whimpered when he ground his prominent erection into the back of her dress, muffled grunts and growls emitting from the mask and echoing in her ear. She couldn't escape the strong hold as Ms. Venable walked into view, eyes glaring forward with the candlelight flickering under chin.

And she walked right by them, as if they were never there. Venable never once acknowledged their presence, not once turning to them and screaming at the compromising position she was in.

And Julie didn't complain when the latex man that had protected her from Venable's wrath pressed its clothed erection against her in jerky motions, as if he was coming underneath the suit.

He breathed deeply into her neck while coming down from the presumable high, taking in as much of her scent as it could. His strong hands released her and she was allowed to walk forward and out of the warm embrace, turning around to get a better, much closer look.

But then he was gone, no latex covered body to be seen. Her eyes darted around the temperate hallway, but there he was nowhere to be seen.

It was a silent and quick trip back to her room, and she touched herself for the first time in months to the feel of his erect cock pressing into her back. Her eyes closed as she came onto her fingers, never seeing the looming black figure watching from the ceiling.

* * *

"I knocked on your door last night but you didn't answer. Where were you?" Mallory had come to sit next to Julie, and watched her with eager eyes.

But she just tried to shrug her off, "I heard you but I was just really tired. What did you need?"

Mallory leaned in, "Gallant said they killed Stu. He told me not to tell anyone but I love gossip and he knows that." She squinted her eyes and smirked, "I saw you last night. You were outside your room."

Julie quickly grabbed Mallory's hand and pulled her close, "Mallory please, don't tell anyone."

"Why? You didn't go outside did you?"

"No, no, of course not." Julie leaned in closer and spoke directly in the Grey's ear. "I saw someone outside my room. "

Mallory was intrigued, "Who was it?" But Julie just shrugged, "No idea. They were covered in black latex, couldn't see his face."

Mallory nodded and pulled back, cringing when Coco commanded she come and refill her mineral water, glaring daggers at Julie for stealing away her Grey.

Dinner was a tense time; Coco spouting about nonsense of Stu being boring and deserving to die and Andre hoping she was killed next. Julie sat between Timothy and Emily, and shot them both concerned looks.

Andre spat, "I hope they come for you next."

"No one will be coming for anybody, not unless they break the rules." Julie's head dropped when Ms. Mead spoke, still very uncomfortable around the woman.

Venable spoke up as trays were wheeled in, "This is a difficult time for everyone. As a small consolation, we have a special treat."

The inhabitants of Outpost 3 watched as a large pot was wheeled in, a Grey lifting the lid to reveal a steamy stew. "Enjoy the _bonne bouche."_

The Gray's ladled the stew into the Purple's bowls until each one had a full bowl, ready to be slurped.

Julie's soup was full of meaty looking chunks and smelled better than any gelatin cube, and she looked to Coco when she claimed having an orgasm in her mouth after one bite.

Her hand lifted the spoon and scooped up a large chunk with a bit of broth, ready to enjoy the first warm meal in weeks when a voice like an angel rang through her head.

_Stop._

The spoon stopped midway to her mouth, and Julie looked around the table to see if anyone else had heard the voice, or if maybe someone there had spoken aloud to her. She shrugged it off- maybe it was the isolation getting to her- and tried to take the first bite once more.

_I said, stop_.

"Why?" Timothy gave her a look when spoke aloud, and she went red when she realized she'd spoken aloud to a voice in her head. Ms. Venable gave her a look akin to a mother to a disobedient child.

"Aren't you going to eat? You don't want it to get cold."

Julie gave her a tight nod but the damage had already been done. She didn't have the chance to taste it when Andre stood up and screamed something that made her want to vomit,

"_The stew is Stu!"_

Everyone, aside from Mead, Venable and Evie- who all continued to eat the 'Stew'- immediately spit out what they'd consumed and were in various states of panic.

Venable rolled her eyes and took another bite, "For heavens sake, don't be ridiculous. There are lines that can never be crossed and not eating people is of the first rank."

"I don't care what it is, it's absolutely divine. And it's full of fiber! I'm going to finish every last drop." She took another bite and Julie wanted to smack her on the back of the head when Andre let out another wail.

* * *

The group of survivors sat in the parlor, Andre sobbing into Dinah Stevens shoulder as Evie defended herself as to not being a Cannibal.

"It was chicken, Andre. Delicious white meat chicken."

But he insisted through tears "You're a cannibal." He screamed, "_You're all cannibals!" _ Dinah calmed him down, made him try to see any reason that it wasn't Stu.

Julie sat on the couch, trying to edge away from the commotion, but did look up when Emily commanded all of their attention.

"Shut up! Shut up!"

They all watched as she stood, and Julie heard it too, or better yet- _didn't _hear it. "The song stopped." But she spoke too soon and the radio let out a click and started again, but was different than before.

_There's got to be a morning after~_

Gallant was up and looked giddy, "They've been playing the same song for two three weeks, why would they change it all of a sudden?"

_If we can hold on through the night~_

Gallant burst into song in tune with the words and danced over to Julie, lifting her up and swinging her across the room with glee.

"Don't you get it!?" He pulled Julie close, nose to nose before swinging her back to her original position. "The Cooperative is trying to tell us something! They're saying, "Hang on. Were coming for you."

The entire room jumped onto Gallant's desperate train of thought, but Julie stood there with a sad smile. Was it wrong that she just _knew _that no one was coming?

**18 months later**

Julie hated when she was right; in fact, she so desperately wished she was wrong and that someone had come for them. But no one ever did.

In the year and a half that Julie March had lived at Outpost 3, she'd lost weight. The thickness that had encompassed her thighs had grown smaller, the protruding belly fat wasting away. The gelatin cubes may have given nutrients, but 12 months ago they'd been taken back to two cubes a day, and her body took a toll.

It was horrible- surviving that is.

Nuclear Winter wiped away everything that the bombs had left alive, so they were all that was left. Everyday was the same and Julie thought that dying would've been better.

It was strange to watch the love blossom between Emily and Timothy- they both knew the risk but didn't fucking care- and what was life without having someone to share it with?

"I have an announcement." They all looked away from their even smaller piece of cube, "This will be our last breakfast. We're cutting back to one meal a day."

Julie gripped her every smaller stomach with a grimace; one meal a day? This was agony; she'd been getting hungrier and hungrier and the dizziness and fatigue was getting worse.

Coco butt in, "You can't be serious."

Evie added, "An effective dieting technique."

But Coco insisted, "So is starving to death! I mean look at that chick-" she pointed at Julie's tired face, "She's gonna fucking die soon if we go on like this."

Venable smiled at Julie's pained face while Gallant intervened in favor of Coco, "How are we supposed to survive on half a cube a day?"

"It's not optimal, but not impossible. Either way, we have no choice, not if we want to keep eating at all."

Julie was in and out; she heard Gallant say something about being over starvation, Coco agreeing and even Mallory saying they should take their chances outside. She flinched when Gallant threw his plate at the wall,

"What're you gonna do? Shoot us all! Huh?" Mead stood and the tall threatening guard made her way to Gallant, probably to kill him. And make him into more stew.

Julie looked away from the assumed bloodshed when red alarms blared through the room, startling everyone, making her grab her head in pain. It was as if the sound was penetrating ever muscle in her brain, putting every hair on edge.

Mead addressed the room. "Perimeter alert. There's been a breach."

Emily gasped and Timothy moved with quick speed to grab Julie as she collapsed to the ground, a bloody trail leaving her nose.

* * *

Ms. Mead made sure her contamination suit was fully in place before alerting the other guard to open the gate, walking out and gazing at the horse drawn carriage that approached.

They hadn't received word of any visitors, so they proceeded with caution. Their guns were cocked and ready as a figure in radioactive resistant wear stepped from the carriage, stopping in front of them. They reached into their pocket to produce an identification booklet.

"I need to speak to Ms. Venable."

Her eyes saw the name and addressed him as such, "Of course Mr. Langdon." He put away his booklet and strides past them, and waved a hand back, "tend to the animals."

* * *

Wilhemina Venable turned at the sound of the door opening, introducing herself- "My name is Wilhemina Venable. I'm in charge here."

She took in this new intruder; He was tall with striking blonde locks that shouldn't have looked that soft when the world was in ashes, his inner eyes having a smattering of red that accented the deep blue that assessed her every move.

And he spoke in a tone akin to a wolf among sheep, "Of course you are."

She seethed on the inside at his degrading tone, "You don't sound like you believe me." But he gave a small shake of the head and gave a sly smirk, "Why wouldn't I?"

His pointed shoes walked near the fireplace, "Seems like you've done a wonderful job. The walls are still standing; your people are alive and healthy. Which is… quiet a feat, considering."

He stood in front of the roaring fire as she questioned him once more. "Three more Outposts have been overrun and the remaining three wont last through the year. "

"Why are you here?"

"Because it's only a matter of time before the same thing happens to you. The good news is there's another facility, a sanctuary. This one's completely impregnable and stocked with enough supplies to last a decade."

She wanted to groan in thanks at the prospect of finally getting out of this godforsaken place, even if the rest of those foul excuses for human beings were saved as well. "You're here to take us there then?"

He chuckled, "Hmmm. I've been assigned to evaluate the people here and select the ones most worthy of survival. I can take all of you."

He cocked his head, "Or none of you." She continued to watch him as her took a few steps closer, "Those who make it, live."

"And those who don't?"

Michael gave her the first sincere smile of the entire exchange, "They end up like my horses."

Wilhemina Venable wanted to shoot him, but knew better, even when he turned her back on her to leave the room, "But fret not Ms. Venable-"

She flinched as he turned to watch her with eyes a shade darker that pierced her soul, "I do believe you have something of mine, and I intend to get it back."


	6. Betrayal

_She walks down a long passageway, her bare feet slapping against the floor and echoing around the walls. There is only darkness ahead; there's no point in looking back. It feels like she's walking for hours and she always ends up in the same place; the circular room. _

_There are always candles lit around the pedestal floor and even more lining the walls. It gives the room an ominous glow. _

_She blinks once, twice, and then he's there. He never has any clothes on and always starts out facing away from her, his soft back on display that had blonde locks cascading to his shoulders like a river of gold. _

_She didn't know him, but she wanted to; yearned to run her hands to see if the hair was as soft as it looked, to feel if the milky skin was as warm as the glow of the surrounding candles. _

_And then he would turn to her; blue eyes making her gasp and step back in need of putting space between them. They were beautiful. _

_And he would smile, "I think you're beautiful." It would turn her tan cheeks a shade darker, and he would take a step forward, her eyes trying not to stray to his cock. _

"_You don't know how long I've waited for you." Another step closer. "Father told me you were hand picked, just to my liking."_

_He stood in front of her, those blue eyes watching her every muscle move with every deep breathe. His pale hand reached up and caressed her plump cheek, "My precious Jewel, do I frighten you?"_

_That long finger with a ring the size of her eyes ran along the wetness of her outer lip, and she nodded. He smirked and arched forward, pressing himself against her, "Don't be, I would never hurt you." _

_Julie always asked him the same question, always with a quiver in her voice, "What do you want from me?" _

_He always gave the same response, __**"Everything**__." _

Julie always awoke in a cold sweat, eyes darting around the room to make sure she was really alone. It was terrified and aroused her to no end; to dream of the blonde man so many nights made her miss the ones where he was gone.

More nights than not did her hand slip down her belly to her unclothed pussy, already wet from the previous dreams. It was always quick; eyes closed and clit rubbed at a furious pace before a soundless cry left her lips, thighs shaking at the tendrils of pleasure coursing through her.

She would stay on the orgasmic high for a few minutes, wetness seeping onto the sweat-covered sheets, which would prompt her to get up and take a tissue to the stickiness between her thighs.

Her brows furrowed at the light redness staining the tissue, grimacing in a childlike manner. "Really body? You're gonna betray me like this?" There was a strange correlation with her monthly bleeding and the heavier dreams. The ones were he simply touched her and whispered sweet words were fine, but the ones that caused her to bleed usually had him bleeding for her, offering himself to her like gift for a Queen.

Julie huffed and slumped on her walk to the bathroom, now feeling the growing pain in her lower abdomen. It was times like these that being female became a burden, cursed with the act of bleeding once a month and the pain that came with it was all to burdensome.

If she could cut out her ovaries, she would. It took her aback when the thought of presenting her bloody ovaries to the man from her dreams entered her head; _not today brain_. But for now she simply propped her leg on the counter, unwrapped the tampon and grimaced as it slid into her, it was always uncomfortable,

It was 5:45 in the morning, and seeing as the cramps were starting to set in, it would be pointless to try and get some sleep. She snatched her phone off the bedside table and opened up her Safari, scrolling through the open tabs.

One was Chloe's Instagram, displaying her friend in a crouching pose with a peace sign- the pinned location was _New Orleans_… damn, her friend hadn't even told her she was out of town- and the white girl she was with was tagged '_mmontgomery_'. Hm, she looked familiar, but didn't care enough to go to her page.

Julie flicked the page away, ignoring the pang of hurt that her best friend was drifting away from her. But it wasn't just Julie's fault; yes, she may have been spending more and more time with Michael, but Chloe had stopped eating lunch with her, stopped answering her texts… it was like she _wanted _them to drift apart.

Her finger hovered over the page titled 'Church of Satan'- she'd left it open after searching in regards to her 'Hail Satan' drea-, and a moment later clicked on it, waiting for it to reload.

The screen was engulfed in a red hue that made her eyes burn, and the realistic picture of Satan made her uneasy. The texts upon texts spoke about how Lucifer was cast out by God for not loving the creations he called humans enough, that we were the cause of Satan's downfall. It said that Satan roamed the Underworld for answers of how to escape, how to take his vengeance on the humans who had done this to him, but he never did.

The next part was titled 'The Antichrist', and her eyes read the sprawl with question.  
It said the Antichrist was Satan's son, the one who looked, talked, and walked like us but he wasn't one of us. He was a special being with powers that people could only dream of and would bring upon the Armageddon; the ender of worlds. Though the ending wasn't complete and the Church was still waiting for the Antichrist to rise up and smite them all.

An address was at the bottom, including a phone number and time schedule. She held no regrets in bookmarking that page, though still closed it with a flick of her finger, putting down the phone and relishing in the sound of morning birds.

* * *

One of the only things that sucked about being 17 was having school; the everyday hellscape that seemed to never have an end. It would have been _slightly _more tolerable if Michael went was there but him and Ms. Mead were adamant that school just wasn't for him. She wished her mom were like that.

"Surprise bitch." Julie turned around and gave a tight smile at Chloe. "Bet you thought you'd seen the last of me."

It was a kick to the teeth to see her friend after her 3 week trip to New Orleans, but what was really strange was the usually pink preppy girls attire; She wore a skintight black turtle neck that tucked into high waisted dark denim jeans, a thick belt and black boots. She even had a large circular hat that was just as black as the outfit.

"You do know we're inside right?" Julie motioned to the hat, in which Chloe rolled her eyes, "It's called fashion sweetie, look it up." Normally, she would've laughed and playfully rolled her own eyes, but instead Julie turned and started away.

"Hey, wait!" Chloe's boots stomped against the marble floor as she tried to catch up, "Aren't you gonna ask how my trip was? Aren't you curious about all the New Orleans juju shit I saw?"

Julie clenched her jaw, "At the moment, not really." She tried to turn away but Chloe tugged her back, "Hey, hey, what's wrong? Did something happen while I was gone? Are you mad about something?"

"You know, I'm not mad that you took the trip, I'm not mad that you made friends there, hell, I'm not even made that you look like you raided _Hottopic_ before showing up." Julie tried not to well up. "But I am mad that mad that my _best friend _didn't give enough shits to tell me that they were leaving for three fucking weeks. So yeah Chloe, I'm mad."

And of course, in a very Chloe like manner, she laughed it off, "Are-Are you actually serious? What are you my mom? I don't have to tell you every little thing I do."

"No, but you could act like were at least some form of friends. You've been ignoring my texts, my calls, _everything_." Chloe allowed Julie to step away with watery eyes. "I thought we were closer than that Chloe."

Chloe let out a cynical laugh and it was like a flip had switched inside her, "Oh I get it, you're jealous that I met people who understand _me." _Chloe grew almost frantic in her speech, hands shaking by her side as her eyes darted around the empty hallway before landing back on Julie._ "_They can help me Julie, why can't you just open your eyes?"

_Please, Father! Open my eyes!_

Julie shook away that dream, "I see you Chloe, I really do. But-"

Chloe stood with fists clenched and jaw tight and the metallic screech that echoed through the hallway had Julie turning, staring aghast the concave locker. Julie turned to her friend; what the hell was happening to Chloe?

"D-Did y-you-"

"_See me_ Julie. I'm more than you ever were and will _ever _be." Chloe's voice dropped an octave lower. "Run away little girl, its gonna get ugly." The tall girl sauntered off with a swagger, paying no mind to the crying fleeing Julie, who ran from the school.

* * *

Michael Langdon was bored. He didn't think there could be such boredom like this; it would have been more fun to be with Julie. He wondered what she was doing. Was she in school? Was it fun? Were the people there nice?

A dark look overcame his face; were the people there nicer than him? Better than him? Would they try to steal her away from him? He shook those thoughts away; they were meant to be together and no stupid teenagers could take her away from him.

An insistent banging at the door had him sitting up in bed, eyes squinting with curiosity. Ms. Mead was off doing unholy thing in his father's name and his Julie was at school, which meant it was a stranger. His eyes rolled into the back of his head as he used his powers to see into the mind of the person at his doorstep.

He leapt of the bed and "Ouch!" He shook off his hard slam into the wall from his sock covered toes and sprinted to the door, opening it with a wide smile. A wide smile that ever so slowly deflated at the sight of his Julie standing before him, blood shot eyes and sniffles leaving her wet nose. It was hard to control the rage in his veins at her distressed state and he was slightly glad she was unaware of the shaking tree in his front yard.

She leaped into his arms and the tree became still. He held her on his doorstep, not knowing how to help. "What do I do?"

She sniffled and another tear fell, "_Hold me." _It took a lot for Julie not to question how one moment they were in the entry of the house and the next his bedroom; she would put that thought away for later. This wasn't the first time Michael had done something like this and she was sure it wouldn't be the last.

He crowded her onto his twin size bed and covered her like an octopus would its prey. Though it did just the trick; his tight hold soothed away her sadness and washed away her tears. The hurt from Chloe's words was slowly fading away, leaving just her and Michael.

They lay on their sides, facing each other. He watched her bloodshot eyes and reached one hand up to feel her warm cheeks, "Do you wanna talk about it?"

Julie thought about telling him everything; spilling all the pain she felt from Chloe's hatred and the sadness she harbored from feeling alone. So she did, her voice a whisper in his ear that had him gripping her harder.

"But you're not alone." He moved in closer. "You'll never be alone again." They watched each others lips and made a kiss an innocent as innocence could be. It lasted only a few seconds long but it felt like heaven. She murmured, "was that okay?"

And he gave her a smile that made his eyes even brighter, "I love you Julie."

It took her aback for a moment, a declaration of love from a boy she'd know for a short amount of time. Did she love Michael Langdon? She wasn't sure, but there was something inside her that said she did. So she said, "I love you Michael."

"You'll never leave me right?" He was such an insecure boy but he had to know, he wanted to hear it.

"Never." Their lips met again, and she started to believe that love was in the air.

* * *

God, being in love was so fun. They were like _dating _dating and they shared sweet kisses whenever they could and held hands when they strolled through the Hotel on the two Saturdays of the month. It was so domestic of her and he made her feel loved in a way her mom never could.

And nothing could go wrong it seemed.

Well…

A harsh banging on the front door had Michael at his feet in an instant, Julie already making her way to open and see whom it was. Julie grimaced; it was a medium height pale girl with clothes akin to Chloe's new style, red lips moving in an angry twitch and squinting eyes.

Wait! She knew this girl- she was the one from Chloe's picture in New Orleans… but why was she here?

"Can I help you?" The girl whose name had been tagged '_mmontogmery_' let out an annoyed exhale and lifted up her phone, displaying a smiling picture of Chloe, "Have you seen this girl?"

Julie answered truthfully as she felt Michael creep up behind her, "We aren't really on speaking terms at the moment-"

The girl cut her off and spat, "I don't need a sob story I just need to know where she is."

"You are _rude._" Michael was nose to nose with the girl. "Don't talk to her like." The rude girl looked ready to shoot back an insult that would probably make him cry so Julie tugged him behind her so he was out of focus, "I don't know where she is. Sorry, can't help."

She made to close the door in the girls face, but some force was stopping her; even with both hands, it wouldn't budge. The girl simply pushed her way inside, ignoring Michael's death like glare, "Ugh, is this what poor people live like? No thank you."

She sat on the couch and crossed her legs. Julie was just in shock and finally was able to slam the door, marching over to this bitch, "Who the hell do you think you are? This is my goddam house and you need to leave."

The girl sighed and looked into Julie's eyes with intensity, "My name is Madison Montgomery and I'm here to find Chloe before she causes a shit show that even the all holy Supreme can't fix. So either you and that twelve year old are gonna help me find her or a lot of people are going to die."

Madison had had the words barely leave her mouth before she started gasping for air, well done nails scratching at her porcelain skin. Julie rushed forward, not knowing what to do. "Michael! Help her! What do i-"

She fell to the floor and crawled away from Michael Langdon; the boy who's eyes were rolled back into his head with a clenched fist at his side, Madison still choking on the couch.


	7. Acceptance

_Julie knew this place; she'd been here before. _

_It was the long hallway- she knew this hallway; knew that to look behind was endless darkness. That it looked as if there was no end to the tunnel. But there was an end, there was -_

"Wake up Julie. You need to wake up!" The incessant shaking at her frail shoulders had Julie March waking up, eyes blearily taking in the blurry form of Emily. It took a moment for the world to turn clear, but a pounding in her head had her whining in pain. Her memory was foggy.

"What happened? Wha-" Emily shushed her and helped her sit up, throwing her legs over the side of the bed with quick ease. She was still in their clothes from the previous meal, which turned out to be very uncomfortable sleeping wear.

"We need to go downstairs; there's a meeting with the person who breached the perimeter earlier. He won't start unless everyone is present." Emily left out the part where they had all been sitting before the man who had yet to identify himself; only for him to let out- what Emily would definitely identify as- a snarl.

_His blue piercing eyes had searched the room, looking at each of them like they were vermin before turning on Venable, "You said this was everyone, correct?" _

_And Venable pursed her lips as if sucking on a sour lemon, "Well, not everyone-" _

"_Is everyone not what I specifically stated? Or were you unaware of what exactly everyone meant?" Venable gave the tightest smile and nodded. _

"_We have one more inhabitant here but she fell ill after dinner." Emily had watched a look of anger cross his face. "I could have one of them retrieve her if you would like." She watched him take a deep breath, a soothing smile crossing his face. _

"_Bring her here. __**Now**__." _

And so here Emily was, having run from the room with one look from Venable. "Come on, we need to get to the parlor." Julie nodded, barely understanding what was going on. Had it not been just one of the cannibals breaching the surrounding area? A weak smile crossed her face- was it the Cooperative? Were they here to save them from this hell?

She weakly asked, "Are they here to save us?" Emily didn't answer, instead helping her across the wide fire in the entry way with precision and speed. They arrived at the entryway to the parlor room when Emily stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. It hurt Emily to see Julie like this; no, the girls hadn't really grown to close in their 18 months together, but to see anyone become a starved version of themselves was painful.

"Try and smile, and not look like you're in pain." Julie nodded with a smile and they walked into the parlor. Gallant smiled at them, while Coco gave a sneer with a lip curl. Andre and Evie could care less; their eyes were trained on the man whose presence seemed to take up the entire room.

"And our final guest arrives." And his voice was smooth like silk, a sleekness that could wrap around your throat and would feel like a soothing touch. Everyone wanted that voice to sooth them.

Emily wouldn't deny that his eyes had watched Julie until she took her seat, quickly darting away to watch the rest of the room. Julie took one look at him and tried to find his gaze, but he seemed resistant against it, so she turned away with half lidded sleepy eyes and waited for him to start. He seemed familiar, but her brain was too foggy to pull up a memory.

"My name is Langdon and I represent the Cooperative. Now, I won't sugarcoat the situation. Humanity is on the brink of collapse and my arrival here is crucial to the survival of civilized life on Earth. "

"The three other compounds in Syracuse, New York, Beckley, West Virginia, and San Angelo, Texas have all been overrun or destroyed. We've had no contact from the six other international outposts, but we are assuming that they too have been eliminated."

Timothy was brave enough to ask after processing the information that said that they were basically it in terms of humankind, "What happened to the people inside?"

It was a simple for Langdon, "Massacred. The same fate that will befall almost all of you." Emily saw the way his eyes darted to the droopy-eyed Julie, own brows furrowing in confusion for his looks at her.

"Almost all?" Mallory's voice was akin to a mouse, and quickly looked shy once more. "With the knowledge that this very moment might occur, we built a failsafe. The Sanctuary."

Coco asked in a voice that was akin to a petulant child, "The Sanctuary?"

To which Langdon nodded, "The Sanctuary is unique. It has certain security measures to prevent overrun." Mead piped up from behind Venable, "What measures? Why weren't we given them?"

Langdon simply raised his right heavily ringed hand in a way that commanded silence, "That's classified. All that matters is that the Sanctuary will survive, so the people populating it will survive, so humanity will survive." Emily was counting on her fingers how many times he glanced at Julie; this was four.

"Who are the people populating it?" Andre had a point, but Langdon gave the same response as before, "Also classified."

Langdon continued, "'However, all hope is not lost. I've been sent here to determine if any of you are fit to join us. It's a rigorous questioning technique called 'Cooperating'. I will then use the information I gather to determine whether or not you are worthy of salvation." Emily counted five.

"What is this, _The Hunger Games? _I paid my way in here and that is the only cooperating I plan on doing." Everyone but Coco knew they would never take her, she was dumber than a bag of rocks and any child of hers would be twice as loud and ugly. And Langdon didn't seem concerned, "You don't have to sit in for questioning."

"What happens if we don't?" Another good question from Andre, to which the response was a hard "You stay here and die."

Gallant eagerly raised his hand, "I'll go first."

Langdon smirked, "And so you shall." Emily counted six.

"But don't worry. If by chance that any of you don't sit for questioning, or are simply not chosen-" He pulled out a small pill container from his vest pocket "On the possibility that feral cannibals come knocking, down one of these. One minute later, you will fall into a sleep and never wake up."

The inhabitants of Outpost 3 were silent, "I look forward to meeting each and every one of you." Emily counted seven as he sauntered out of the room, meeting her eyes for a moment before quickly looking away. Those blue eyes made her skin crawl. Once he was out of hearing range Venable took his spot.

She looked ready to murder, anyone from Coco to Langdon would do. None of them were very happy; there was a chance that only a few of them would be saved and the rest left to die. What would she do if she was saved and not Timothy, or if he was and not her?

"Emily, take Miss March back to her room. It would be unfortunate if she were to keel over in the parlor." Emily was quick to get Julie up, helping her out of the room and back across the entryway, Timothy quickly following after them but staying a bit away.

"I'm okay Emily, really. I just need some rest." Emily didn't believe her in any way but nodded, watching her step into her large room, marveling at how big it was. It was the size of Emily and Timothy's room combined, with presumably the bathroom hidden behind the closed off doorway.

"I'll feel better tomorrow, promise. Now go off and find Timothy, you guys have things to do I assume." A knowing look from Julie had Emily blushing and fleeing, closing the door behind her, allowing Julie to collapse on her bed with a huff.

It took a few minutes for her light breath to echo through the dark room, and for the dark strawberry blonde haired figure to sleuth from the corner of the room. Those blue eyes took in the sleeping form; they saw every sharp bone and could feel every pain and ache. It made rage fill his veins. He took the few steps to reach her and let one hand run along her much smaller than before cheeks- he's always loved how chubby they'd been. Those slim digits trailed down her neck with soft precision, grazing the globes of her bountiful breasts and sliding down her arm.

How he'd missed these hands; he could remember every time they held him close or chased away his fears. He'd dreamt of these hands, craved these hands, and missed everything about her. Langdon interlocked their fingers, marveling at the cold they now held. He laid himself, curled into her side, head resting on her bosom.

He'd missed this, so much. With a close of his eyes and a shuffle closer he was asleep, and Julie's skinny frail body healed and grew, bone reverting back under her flesh and growing full of life. He'd never slept so well.

* * *

"How is she?" Timothy inquired this with a heavy brow, watching Emily let out a long sigh as she closed the door to Julie's room. He knew the answer wasn't going to be good; she'd looked horrible over dinner, and during Langdon's informative meeting she'd looked barely alive, and after having a nosebleed and passing out- he knew it wasn't good.

"She's asleep." Emily paused. "I don't think she'll last much longer like this. She looks like she's starving but gets the same as the rest of us. It just doesn't add up. And now with Langdon here, it just doesn't make any sense."

They both didn't trust Langdon; the whole 'Sanctuary' idea seemed too good to be true and his whole concept of Cooperating seemed like bullshit. Why couldn't they all be saved?

"I think he's hiding something." She grabbed Michael's hand and led him up the stairs, looking around to make sure they were alone. "I say we check his room, he might have something there that can tell us what's really going on."

Timothy wasn't on board, "What? You want to sneak into Langdon's room? What if Venable finds out?" But Emily grabbed his hand and squeezed, "She won't." It was a quick peck on the lips that had Timothy giving in to her scheme, both of them sneakily walking down the hallway, trying to find Langdon's room.

His door was open, and they watched with bated breath to see if anyone left since they couldn't see anyone inside. It was a solid five minutes before Emily relented and tugged him inside, eyes widening at the glowing laptop on his desk.

"A laptop? Didn't think there were any left…" She scurried over to it and lifted the top, displaying the screen. "How is there even Wifi? There are no cellular towers." Timothy walked over to her and looked as well, "There's messages from a week ago. How?"

Langdon's emails page covered the entire screen, and they were all to and from the Cooperative. There wasn't much that was important, mostly stuff he'd told them about during the meeting a few hours prior. Except-

"'Venable has deviated from protocol and has instituted her own rules forbidding sexual contact. Punishable by death.' Venable's a fucking liar." God, the things Emily would give to see the look on Venable's face when Langdon tore her a new one. But first, "Let's check his desktop."

Emily dragged the cursor to click the little red x at the top left hand corner, revealing a plain blue background with two folders. One was titled 'Kineros' and the other had no title at all. "You ever heard of Kineros?"

Emily shook her head and instead clicks on the blank one, nearly flinching when a password was required. "Shit, it could be anything." She turned to Timothy, "Any ideas?" They were both stumped; it could be anything.

_March_

Emily stepped away from the laptop and looked around the room, "Did you hear that." Timothy was still at the computer brainstorming when she asked. "Hear what?"

"That voice. Someone just spoke to me." Timothy gave her a look and she glared, "I know what I heard." He inquired, "And what did the voice say?" She'd heard it clear as day, and it all made some weird sort of sense. Langdon, who hadn't been able to keep his eyes off Julie and had a locked password protected file, and a voice had whispered Julie's last name. Emily was trying to piece it all together.

"Its March, the password is March." Timothy looked confused and tried to question her but she pushed his aside, typing in the five-letter word, smiling when it unlocked. Her eyes watched as hundreds and hundreds of files appeared, each one titled with a number, ranging from 0 to the thousands.

"Emily, this is bad he could be back any second. We need to go." Timothy made his way to the open door and peeked outside. She wasn't listening, finger dragging the cursor to a random file, waiting barely a second for it to pop open.

"Oh my god. Timothy-" Emily turned to tell him what she'd opened but he was gone. She turned around and stumbled back in fright.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?"

* * *

_May you rise from the void, Father May your darkness guide me._

Julie stretched out on her bed, fingers clenching and unclenching in that akin to a baby.

God, she felt so good. _Oof_, her bones felt fresh and clean. Unfortunately, she seemed to have fallen asleep in her purple dress, which was pretty uncomfortable, but that had been a better sleep than any other. The room didn't even feel cold, but then again it seemed that someone had gone and lit the fireplace.

Her eyes were finally open, looking around the slightly lit room, arms outstretching in front of her and-

"Ho-Holy Holy _Shit_!" Julie hopped out of bed like the energizer bunny and did a little dance; something had happened to her, something _marvelous. _The arms that had once been that of a stick with veins was now full and meaty, the stretch marks back were they belonged. The fingers that were once twigs were thick once more, a strong grip that had feeling like herself again.

Her stomach- _oh how she'd missed her stomach_\- the once concave flat skeleton like form she'd had was gone, and in place was the flabby cushiness she'd loved and missed so much. Oh love handles, they were back! Her thighs were thick as could be and legs stronger than ever.

She felt like a Goddess, ready to fight the world with all her might. She had to show everyone, it was a miracle! The old and improved Julie skipped- yes, she skipped like a jolly kid- to the door, sliding it open and –_oh. _

The latex covered man was there, here, standing in front of her, her nose practically in his chest. And now that she could feel it, it was more like rubber- a rubber man. It was difficult to see his eyes, but she felt when his hands gripped her thick shoulders and pushed her back, stepping into the room and sliding her door shut.

Julie wasn't scared; it wasn't like he'd ever hurt her- he didn't all those months ago. In fact, that had been 18 months ago, where had he been. She was tempted to ask, but she instead asked, "What do you want from me?"

He took a few steps forward, till they were touching once more and skimmed those hands down her sides, grasping her sides and tugging her close.

_Power in Satan to overcome my weaknesses. _

He curiously tilted his head down at her, fingers clenching in her dress. Her own hands gripped the suit. What was wrong wit her? She wanted this; she wanted him to fuck her. But why?

_Power in your name, to be strong within_

She yelped when he threw her onto the bed, appearing before her to tug off her dress, revealing her once more full voluptuous breasts and panties. She breathed the command "touch me."

And so he did, sliding those black hands up her thighs and creeping up her stomach, tearing the bra in two. She didn't ask him to take the mask off but was disappointed he couldn't suck her nipples dry. Instead, he rubbed against them to create some lovely friction that had her panties wet.

And as if he could smell it, he moved down, tearing the panties in shreds. Once again, he couldn't eat her sweet juices but instead stuck two thick fingers inside her wet hole, fingering her with a fury.

_I found her, she's here_

Her toes were curling in pleasure, but the rubber man knew what he wanted. Her tugged up those thighs and released his cock from his suit, slamming into her and thrusting like a dog in heat. Her moans echoed through the room like a record on repeat, and he relished in them

_Please, Father!_

"Please, please, yes, please!" He never faltered, holding up her lower half with desperate thrusts that had her seeing stars. She hadn't felt pleasure like this in a long time, not since-

_Open my eyes!_

Julie came with a scream, tears welling in her eyes and sliding down her plump cheeks. He didn't stop, not until his own release filled her to the brim. Her thighs fell as he let his cock slip free, but continued palming over her warm flesh with curiousness akin to a child exploring a playground, but yet, he touched her as if he had once before.

Julie murmured, "who are you?" through blurry eyes as she felt him leave the bed, but of course he didn't respond. She heard his steps, heard the door close and felt sleep overcome her body once more.

_Ave Satanas_


	8. Stronger

A few weeks ago over breakfast, Jessie had made her daughter pancakes- it was a Saturday and they had time to spend the morning together, so why not have fluffy blueberry cakes on a cool morning like this? Well, as Jessie had been reaching into the lower cabinet under the sink to find the Pam- they never understood using butter to coat the griddle and stuck with Pam- when an ungodly screech had left her lips.

It had been a rat; a plump and vile rodent that had fled from its dark spot in the cabinet and onto the window lit kitchen floor, causing Julie to scream and scramble to get her arms around her knees, feet off the ground. The rat was looked like a wound up toy, running in every direction before eventually squeezing into a hole that had come with the house, leading directly into the basement.

It had taken a minute for Jessie's heart to calm down, "Well, guess we'll call the Exterminator on Monday." Her heeled foot kicked the cupboard door closed, guess they were using butter today after all. Julie watched the hole with trepidation, slowly eating the warm cakes her mom was continuously placing in the middle of the table. A sip of juice and two more warm rounds and she was done, both woman standing and stretching.

"I'll be back around 8ish so whatever you make leave me some in the oven." Jessie pulled on her coat, "You have any plans today? Liz misses you so try and visit the Hotel when you can."

"I was just gonna hang with Michael, maybe watch some movies. There's a lot of stuff he's never heard of." Her mom raised a brow in question. "He's never seen Terminator 2; Judgment Day, absolutely no clue who John Connor was. Believe me, there's a lot."

Jessie made a face and walked to the front door, keys jingling from her purse and lipstick in her skirt pocket. "Have a good day sweetie!" The door shut and the lock clicked into place. Julie was alone, huff leaving her lips in a pout. Saturdays meant no school but staying inside all day seemed so boring. Whenever Michael showed up she'd ask if he wanted to get out for the day.

They'd been spending time together and it was nice. She learned more and more about him; things she did and didn't want to know. Such as Ms. Mead was a hardcore Satanist and the one time she'd stayed over for dinner, Michael had said grace- thanking Satan for their meal. Ms. Mead had kept her dark eyes on Julie's face, almost like this was a test and she was waiting for her to slip up, but Julie smiled at Michael and let him finish his prayer before digging in.

But after learning that, she typically had him over and not her visiting him, she didn't want to bring back those strange dreams that she luckily hadn't had in a while.

Though, the good typically outweighed the bad in terms of Michael; he was quiet an innocent boy. There wasn't a lot he knew in pop culture, or movies, or books… wow he really didn't know anything at all. And she never asked about his Grandmother, it always brought him down. It was nice to have someone to talk to all the time, especially when they looked at you like you hung the moon when you spoke. There was something about Michael; it was hard to place but there _was _something that Michael that didn't add up.

And as always, whenever she tried to question how odd he was, the thought flew away like a kite in the wind.

Julie looked at the clock- 9:52- and decided that she'd do the dishes first and then maybe web surf till he arrived. The purple rubber gloves were always placed on the left side of the sink, and Julie slipped them on with ease, turning the water to hot and giving the bowls a good scrub.

It was a particular tough piece of flour filled batter that was stuck to the rim of the glass bowl that had her attention at the moment, nearly screaming when a pair of pale arms slipped around her waist, a head of blonde hair coming over her shoulder to watch her work.

"How did you even get in?!" She turned her head and gave him a smile, "It was unlocked." She knew it was a lie, she'd heard her mom lock it as she'd left, but just nodded. There was no point in arguing.

"I heard you scream earlier and I almost came over but Ms. Mead said you were okay and said I had to wait." Using one gloved hand she pointed at the hole at the base of the wall with a sneer, "A rat was in the cabinet and ran down there. Better a rat than a spider but now we have to call an Exterminator on Monday which is just a drag- what're you doing?"

Michael had gotten to his knees, peering into the hole with a blue wide eye. "Where does it go?" And she said the basement, that's usually were they all hid in the winter months as far as she knew. But seeing as it wasn't winter it was odd to find one.

He sat up on his knees and gazed up at her, "Can you show me?" But she raised a brow and finished the last piece of silverware, snapping off her gloves, "You wanna see our ratty old basement? The rat is probably biding his time down there, waiting to raid our cabinet tonight."

There was a glint in his eyes that made her wary, "What about you show me the rat and then we watch Judgment Day?" She didn't question how he'd known that she'd been talking about the sci-fi movie earlier and just went alone with it, nodding with shrug of her shoulders.

"Sure, what's the worst that could happen?"

And she wanted to eat those words, take them and make a word stew that tasted repulsive beyond belief. She and Michael had gone to the basement and he'd looked around with eyes akin to a predator searching for a prey.

She'd stood on her tippy toes and pulled the light string, the warm glow enveloping the usually dark room. No one ever came down here and it looked like it; a few holiday boxes littered the corners and cobwebs were everywhere.

"Okay we've seen it, can we go back upstairs now?" He didn't answer, facing away from her. "Michael?"

Her hand touched his shoulder and "Jesus, you're burning up -Michael?" It was a few steps around his form and it was like having a real life horror movie in front of her. His eyes were rolled back into his skull, and to make it worse, the light started flickering.

Was this the fucking Conjuring? Was he possessed? Had all of Ms. Meads Satanic shit gotten to him and now he was fucking losing it?

"_Michael!" _

It was that yell that had his eyes returning, brows immediately furrowing at her lightly wet and fearful eyes. "What is it?" He tried to grasp her cheek but she stepped back. "Julie…?"

"What was that? Your eyes, they were-" She made a rolling motion and he nodded, walking to the box of decoration, ushering her over but she shook her head. Was this not strange? People eyes didn't do that. But he gave her that smile that melted her heart and held his hand out to her.

And like the nutcase she was, Julie took his hand and looked where he pointed- and letting out a cry of disgust. The rat- the innocent ugly rat that had just been in their kitchen looking for a scrap of food- seemed to have imploded, guts staining the wall.

"Now it won't be a problem." She allowed him to tug her up the stairs, watching as the light turned off, seemingly by itself, and the darkness consumed the room once more.

* * *

It was tense inside the March living room; Julie sat on the opposite side of the couch and was watching Michael with an emotion between rage and curiosity. Was she shocked that Michael had somehow choked out Madison until Julie had begged him to stop? Was this going under the category of 'Weird Shit that Michael Langdon Can Do'? Yes, and frankly it scared her. Would he ever do something like that to _her?_

_I would die before hurting you_

And the fact that he could occasionally read her thoughts or project his own into her head made her send him a glare from his own seat on the loveseat, to which he shyly looked away.

God, how many times had he heard her thoughts? Had…had he heard any of the vulgar things she'd thought about him? The current blush on his face was enough of an answer. And Madison simply glared at Michael with a red tinted throat.

This was a mess, an utter disaster and Julie wanted to take a shovel, dig a hole, sick her head in the ground and cover it up. But right now her distaste for the situation at hand could wait.

"Now-" She looked between Madison and Michael with judgmental eyes, "Can we all handle this like adults and be civilized for one minute?"

Madison scoffed, "Seriously? I'm the most civilized person in this goddam planet and hey, I've been on TV. So why don't you tell your children of the corn boy toy to try not to death choke me with his mind."

"I only did that so you would leave us alone." He glowered with a raised upper lip. " You were going to hurt Julie-"

"Oh my god, down rover! I wasn't going to hurt your mommy dearest." Madison and Michael looked ready to tear each other's throats out and Julie was starting to loose it. It was like dealing with children. The noise was getting louder in the room, the anger was rising and Julie was _done. _

She stood and growled like a demon, snarling when they both turned to her with shocked eyes, "_Stop it! Both of you!" _

She wanted to tear her hair out and turned on Madison, "Can you just, for one goddam minute, not be a _rude bitch? _This is my fucking house, and that-" She stuck her arm out like an arrow at Michael, "-Is my boyfriend who I will let _kill you _if you don't tell me exactly what the fuck you want."

Michael looked at her with pure adoration and love; she was born to be his queen.

Madison huffed and shockingly enough, deflated just a bit. And she didn't even roll her eyes, "Look." She pushed a lock of hair behind her ear, "I'm not here to get killed or cause any trouble. I really just need to find Chloe."

"Why do you need her so bad?"

"My Supreme-"

"What the fuck even is a Supreme?" Madison rolled those eyes again and went to open her mouth but stopped, "He needs to leave."

Michael spat "_No_" like it was a curse and Julie almost agreed, but inquired why he had to. Madison's answer was simply, "Because I don't trust either of you freaks. But there is something fucked inside of him and this is top-secret shit. So either he goes, or I do."

Julie slumped in her seat; she knew Madison was right- there was something in Michael but it was still a mystery. But at this point, Chloe was a priority.

_Michael_

His head turned sharply, watching her with hawk eyes. _Please, five minutes. You'll be right outside. _He glowered and went to disagree in what she knew would be angry thought but- _Please Michael, for me._

_**Fine**_

He was gone with a mental growl in a flash and Madison smirked, before starting to explain all that she could in the span of five minutes.

Madison was a witch, Chloe was a witch, and a Supreme was basically the strongest witch there was. Apparently, Chloe had heard all about Miss Robichoux's Academy for Exceptional Young Ladies through some influencer Coco something-or-other's Instagram and had decided to contact the Supreme at the time- Fiona.

From there on, Fiona had purchased Chloe a ticket to New Orleans and they'd tested her powers. Julie grew wary when Madison's voice started to grow questionably still, "I was there when she tried the Seven Wonders. I was gonna take the old bitch out soon enough. But anyway, Chloe completed 5 out of 7 of the Wonders- hell, I can barely do 3 but she almost did 6, but Fiona's daughter Cordelia barged in and stopped it."

"And then, Fiona called her in her office a few days later and I was in the hallway when Chloe ran out." She let out a shaky laugh. "There was something seriously fucked with that girl. Can I smoke in here?" Julie wanted to say no but she was too interested to care about some smoke.

Madison chuckled and took out a cigarette, lighting it with the tip of her finger. "And now she's here and well, I needed to get away from that hell house anyway. Fiona is apparently fucking dead as of like two days ago and Cordelia is the Supreme. And as Supreme, she can ask me of basically anything, including this. I need to bring Chloe back so Cordelia can fix her. Now, will you fucking help me or not?"

Madison blew out a puff of smoke and waited for an answer. And Julie was still processing everything. Witches were real, like, Merlin and Harry Potter could be real for all she knew. But Chloe was in trouble; this dead witch had done something to her and even if the hurt from their last exchange still lingered and ached, she was going to help her and bring her back to this Cordelia person and fix her.

"If it'll help Chloe, I'll do anything." That answer made Madison smirk and blow out another smoke cloud. "Do you have any ideas where she could be? Any hideouts? Anything?"

Julie shook her head, "Aside from her house… You have tried her house right?" Madison made a face that had Julie groaning. "You didn't try her house, did you?"

But as luck would have it, Chloe wasn't in her house. In fact, her house looked like no one had been there for days. The fridge's food gone rotten and flies littered the kitchen. Chloe's mother had left the picture ages ago, and her father tended to be a bit of an away from home dad. But true to his heart, he cared for his daughter above all else.

"Mr. Bennett?! Hello?" Three of them spread out, checking each downstairs room of the large house. Michael had no luck, and quickly appeared at Julie's side to help her check.

Madison had no luck as well, strutting from room to room in heels that belonged on a runway. "Can we go now? She's clearly not here."

Julie and Michael met her by the front door and sighed in defeat, "She's not in her room and her dads is the only one upstairs. I'll check it quick then we can go." She directed to Michael, "Wait here. I'll check upstairs."

Michael watched her go with look akin top a kicked golden retriever, slumping against the wall as her footsteps echoed up the stairs. Madison and him looked up at the ceiling, following her footsteps down the hallways.

Madison barked "Anything up there?". The footsteps stopped. Michael watched the ceiling with a furrowed brow, and Madison scoffed again. The footsteps resumed and they both heard the unlock of the door upstairs.

Michael was gone the moment Julie's screams echoed through the house, and Madison huffed then marched up the stairs with a click of her heels. She rounded the corner that led into a long hallway before recoiling back, nearly falling down the stairs.

The smell was _retched. _It was that akin to vomit and puss all jammed into a rotting fish carcass and thrown into a dumpster. Madison took her time walking down the hall, nearly stumbling into the wall. "Is it me or does this hell hole smell like someone died?"

And funny enough, someone indeed had died; Mr. Bennett was slumped over in his reading chair. A group of flies were and a bundle of maggots were feasting on his eyeballs; his skin had become a grey putrid mess of grimy flesh that was much past its prime. His usual well-kept stomach had turned to mush that spilled over his lap. He looked like he'd been dead for days.

Michael walked in behind Madison, and Julie stayed outside; she'd known him, it hurt too much to see him like that. Madison walked closer to his corpse. Her perfectly manicured hair grabbed a fly and held it between her fingertips. A beat passed before she let it go, turning to Michael.

"We need to find Chloe, or else she's gonna do this again." Michael gave a solemn nod to Madison and watched her leave the room. He looked at the body and took a step closer. Normally he could only see inside people who were alive and breathing, but maybe-

"_Chloe is that you?!" _

_Charles Bennett yelled from his bedroom; it was his day off and by god he was going to watch some football. But if Chloe was home, then maybe they could spend a little time together. Seeing as he had work and she was always at school or off with friends, they rarely spent time together. _

_He sat up and clicked off the TV, watching the door as her footsteps grew near. Come to think of it, they really hadn't hung out together in a while. This would be good for them._

_The door opened, "Hey honey! I was thinking maybe we could-" _

_Chloe Bennett killed her dad instantly; he hadn't even had the words out of his mouth before his heart had erupted in his chest, blood oozing from his mouth and nose. She was crying with black filled eyes, _

"_You don't tell me what to do anymore."_

Michael backed away from the corpse. Madison had been right; Chloe had killed her dad without a second thought. It was like watching himself; all those babysitters, the priest. But he'd never hurt his grandma on purpose. He'd loved her, yet how could Chloe kill her own Dad? Michael would have given anything for a father to love him.

But then again, he had his true father now and pushed away those thoughts, leaving behind the corpse and finding Julie and Madison. And Madison inquired, "What the fuck do we do now?"

Julie sighed and rubbed her eyes, "I don't know Madison, but its getting late, I do have a Mom who doesn't know I've been out searching for my best friend who happened to murder her dad. And I also skipped school, so I kinda need to get home. We can look again tomorrow."

"Fine by me. See you tomorrow losers." And she was gone in a flash, neither knowing where she went.

Michael reached to hold her hand but she resisted, "Do you want to-"

She cut him off and he reared back an inch, "No Michael. Not today." She sped off to god knows where, leaving him standing on the Bennett porch with tears in his eyes. Julie was angry with him, he could practically taste her anger on his lips.

The cars on the street started to shake and the Bennett house itself started to creak. He couldn't control it, not when the Julie was angry with him and maybe- _maybe she would never forgive him for whatever he'd done_. No, no she had to, he couldn't loose her. He needed to apologize. He needed to fall to his knees and beg for forgiveness from his Julie before she left him for good.

He couldn't lose her too.

* * *

Jessie March wanted to be pissed, wanted to be furious that her daughter had skipped school and then hadn't even been at home when she'd arrived. In fact, it looked like she'd been gone all day. This girl was going to get a stern talking to when she came home.

Jessie stopped- _if _she came home. Okay, most of the anger was gone and now the worry and panic started to seep into her bones, What if something had happened to her? Who would she even call?

First she called the Bennett house, but there was no answer. And then it struck her like a brick; she was probably next-door with Michael and Miriam. She huffed and slipped back on her heels, clomping like an angry bull out of the house and across the porch.

Her fist harshly banged on the front door; frowning when only Miriam answered the door with a tired face- normally Michael was quick to answer. "Is Julie here?"

Miriam Mead made a frown, "No, and I was just going to barge over and break your door down to see if Michael was with your girl." So both of them were missing? Jessie nodded and sighed, "Well hopefully they're together. If you see her, tell her to come home." Miriam nodded and said the same, closing the door as Jessie stormed off.

What if they'd run away together? Her Julie wasn't like this- she never skipped school or didn't tell her where she was. She was a good kid and they trusted each other. She just hoped she came home soon. Jessie was back on her own porch and stepping through the front door, kicking off her heels once more.

She bypassed the kitchen and went to the living room, flipping on the switch with a sigh, only to gasp at the sight of her daughter on the couch with a tall blonde woman, who was all dressed in black with a soft smile.

"Hi mom. Sorry, I'm late. This is Cordelia. Can she stay for dinner?"


	9. Desperation

Emily trembled as Ms. Mead stood in front of Timothy, her inquiry still in the air. They both knew this was the worst possible scenario in the case that they got caught. She would take them to Venable, or worse, take her to Langdon, where he would no doubt kill them. Emily nervously shot her eyes to the open laptop, wanting to reach over and close it.

"I'll ask again; what are you two doing in here?"

Both of them scrambled for excuses, but Emily was first to answer. "We were waiting for Langdon, we wanted to talk to him about the Sanctuary." Mead seemed skeptical with squinted eyes but let her continue.

"We're just as concerned as everyone else about getting out of here- if not more. We want to be saved- it may look dumb but we saw no harm in trying. We just wanted to talk to him."

"And yet, he isn't here and you were fiddling around with Mr. Langdon's things." Ms. Mead took a step forward and Emily took one back, "Plots against this Outpost are strictly forbidden, punishable by death. Now, you two-" Her eyes darted between them, "wouldn't do something like that, would you?"

They eagerly shook their heads and denied her jest, to which she quirked a dark colored brow. It was simple for her to turn and take a peek at the laptop that Emily had been hovering over when she'd arrived, and gasped at the image displayed. Her hand slammed it shut and turned dark eyes to Emily.

"Keep your mouth shut about what you saw girl, else I'll put a bullet between your brows. Clear?" Emily nodded and tried not to let her lip quiver.

"Get out. And don't let me find you doing any of this shit again." They were gone with their tails between their legs, scampering off down the hall, away from Mead. Timothy shut the door to his room and watched Emily sit on his bed, gasping for breath.

"What the hell did you see?" She gave him a look. "Oh, c'mon, she can't hear us in here."

"You don't know that. Venable and Mead are crazy and I-I-I don't wanna die over this." He ran to her and held her shaking face in his hands, "I won't let her touch you Em. We're in this together."

She nodded while tears slid down her cheeks, eventually leaning forward and stuffing her face in his chest while letting harsh sobs and he simply held her close, tightening his grip at the thought of Mead or Venable actually killing them for snooping around. Timothy loved her and they needed to survive, doing stupid shit like this couldn't happen again.

Her sobs stopped and red-rimmed eyes stared into his, "I trusted her, and she's been lying to us." He was confused. "Who?"

And Emily growled, "Julie. I _saw_ her. _With him." _Timothy barely had an understanding of what Emily was saying; had there been pictures of Julie and Langdon? Together? "You mean like before the blast?"

She nodded and "what should we do?"

"Tonight, after dinner, we'll confront her and see what she knows. If that picture was anything to go by, than she should have more than enough information on who Langdon really is."

* * *

"_What do you want from me?"_

_His nose skimmed her neck, dragging across the soft rose smelling flesh he'd come to know and crave like the desperate fiend he was. She could feel his hardening cock pressing against her clothed hip, yearning to feel her closer. He opened his mouth with a smirk and those black eyes watched her with a desperation she'd grown to crave. He whispered the same answer like the serpent he was, _

_Those nimble fingers skimmed her clothed thighs, wishing they were touching her smooth flesh, feeling the soft skin that belonged to him._

"_Everything."_

The last time Julie had slept this good was way before the blast, years before. If she really thought about it, it had to have been the night of a birthday- she'd gone out and done something fun, with someone she couldn't remember, but the memory of sleeping that night felt just like now.

It was a stretch that had her back cracking, moan echoing when she flopped back onto the bed with a huff. Last night was fresh in her mind; she was- by some magical force- herself again, and she'd had a visitor that had fucked her in a way that had her biting her lip. He'd taken her like he'd owned her, like she was his to fuck and use as he pleased- just thinking about his strong hands and thrusting cock had her wet.

But the severity of the situation stopped any lewd thoughts; how was she supposed to explain to the other people how she'd gone from looking like a mummy that had lost its wrapping to herself? Oh god, what would Venable say? And what if…?

She scrambled off the bed and started pacing like a madman; what if someone had heard her? She'd been executed on the spot under Venable's bullshit rule of no fucking on the premises. She stopped- then again, no one had come for her.

The clock read 9:45, and seeing as there was no more breakfast the day was hers until supper. She was making her way to get dressed when a distressing thought popped up, looking at her stomach and wondering how long it would last. Would she grow frail sooner or later- none of it made any sense but when the world is over, nothing really ever does.

Today was a day for a simpler purple dress, brown curls left down the rest of her covered shoulders. In her house, shoes were an option, not a necessity, but at Outpost 3, shoes were required, which always made her groan. This place would never feel like home.

The door slid open with ease, and no one was out; there wasn't a Grey in sight, or a single Purple lurking about. She listened and couldn't even hear Venable's cane stopming about. This was a bit odd, but she still slid the door closed behind her, shoes clacking as she walks about.

No one was in the parlor, which once again, was really strange seeing as Evie, Gallant and Coco like to sit in there and drink all the water while spiting everyone here. Julie never really hung around there and don't ask her if she thought they deserved to be saved, cause they sure as hell did not. And seeing as Evie was ancient, Gallant was gay, and Coco was… well she was Coco, none of them would be very _productive _in furthering the human existence. But then again, she still barely understood how she'd been chosen.

It was a quick walk upstairs that had her gazing at closed doors that were usually kept open. This was starting to feel like a horror movie.

She knocked on the first door, waiting for a response. A minute or two must have passed before the door was pulled open hard and fast, a pissed of looking Coco glaring at her, the glare morphing from hatred to shock, and then almost disgust?

"What in the _fuck _happened to you? Yesterday you looked like a goddam coke addict and now you look like -" Her hand motioned to the entire length of Julie, who in turned shrugged. But Coco wasn't having it and tugged her in, pushing her against the door.

Her red lips looked chapped up close, and the large hair styled on her pale head was all out of place. Coco was as strong as Julie, but Coco was also angry and anger was a strong emotion. "You're gonna tell me what the fuck you did you fucking freak or I will rat you out to Venable for sneaking food."

"You're a liar-"

"Am I? How else are suddenly fatter than fucking Kirstie Alley after Christmas dinner? Tell me, or I go to Venable and get your ass shot in the brain." This was bad, this was really fucking bad because she didn't have an answer and even though Coco was lying out of her ass, Venable loathed Julie and would take any opportunity to shoot her in the head. Why couldn't she just have a good thing and not have shit like this always bite her in the ass.

"Coco, please, I swear to you-"

"You're fucking _dead_-"

A knock at the door, on the slab of wood that Julie was up against was jarring to Coco, who grinned like a snake and threw Julie from the door, puling it open with ease and a smile, fully expecting Gallant, Mead or luckily Venable.

Langdon stood in front of Coco will a small smirk, hands tucked behind his blazer covered back, rings clinking lightly as his fingers tapped against one another. Coco was shocked to say the least, "Is it time for my interview?" Any thought of blackmail at Julie flew from the room.

But Langdon simply chuckled and took one large step into her space. Julie was still hiding off to the side of the room, but she was the interaction and felt jealousy swell in her gut. He was so close to Coco, whispering something in her ear that she wished she could hear.

His mouth moved away and Coco was off running in a flash. Julie stared as the door shut on its own, leaving just her and Langdon.

He was a vague memory from last night- _it felt like longer than that, it wasn't just last night was it- _and it was hard to pull it up. Emily had gotten her and she'd sat on the couch as his words flowed into one ear and right out of the other, only a small understanding present in her mind.

His eyes searched her like he wanted an answer that she didn't know, and he looked just as good as he had the night before. She wondered if his hair was as smooth as silk, or as soft as cotton. Her finger twitched at her side as his gaze met hers.

It was three striking steps and he was directly in front of her, eyes staring into hers in a way that made her heart want to beat out of it's entire cavity and flop away. The silence was killing her, but what did she say?

"Hello."

He gave a smile and waited a beat before mimicking her, "Hello."

It was a pulsing in her skull that made the pain start, her hand reaching up and clutching her temple. He simply continued to stare, watching her eyes scrunch up in pain as the pressure grew to a point of being unbearable and her knees started to give out. And at that point, Langdon swopped forward and held her up with his arms.

Her breathed into her ear, "Acceptance is always simpler than resistance Ms. March."

Her eyes turned blurry as he held her gaze, it was a gaze she knew, _she knew him-_

_The trees were waving in the wind and the sun was going down, but the day was far from over. Their day at the carnival had been just absolute perfection; there had been cotton candy and hot dogs that tasted worse than the ones from 7-11. _

_The best part was when he'd won her a blue teddy bear, and kept it clutched close to her chest. The Ferris Wheel had gone out of service just as they'd been at the front of the line, and even when he'd offered to 'fix it', she waved him off with a smile. There would always be more fairs. They'd made sure to go into the Hall of Mirrors, and the little zoo had four goats that seemed to take a liking to him more than her._

_It was nearing dark and they were running out of things to do, so then they left, walking to find a recluse park to collapse in the grass; the sky was clear above them and no one was around. Julie turned on her side and so did he, his blue eyes watching her youthful face with a smile. _

_They wished it would always be like this; Julie and Michael, together forever. It was written in the stars that they were meant to be. He'd told her before that there was no other on the face of this hellish world that could replace her, and she knew there was no one else she'd rather hold than him. _

"_I love you Michael. No matter what happens, you'll always have my heart." It was simple as maneuvering his hand to lie flat over her chest, his hand feeling her heartbeat in his palm. _

"_I love you Julie, and I promise, I'll never leave y-_

Reality was jolting to the human mind, and a tear slid down her cheek as she looked at Michael. No this was Langdon, Representative of the Cooperative, the one who was their Salvation. The memories made no sense, if she tried she couldn't remember them, they only came out to give her the same as a hammer to the skull.

And Langdon simply held her close, desperation bleeding in his gaze. But the film reel that had played in her mind was gone and she was alone with a stranger. And as if he could tell, he righted her straight up and released her with a sigh.

"Come to my room tonight. Do not be late."

He was gone with a gentle close of Coco's door, and for some reason, Julie wished he wasn't.

* * *

Supper was truly an affair that would've been better spent with the cannibals outside than in here with the inhabitants of Outpost 3. What once was one cube had become 1/4 of the whole, and for once, their eyes weren't on the food.

All eyes were on Julie- except Coco, who refused to even look her way, and Gallant looked like he couldn't care less. But Evie, Andre, Dinah, Emily and Timothy were nearly gaping at her like she was a new act in the circus. She didn't let it irritate her, and simply refused to meet eyes with Venable or Mead. It was like the piercing glare from Venable was a harpoon ready to launch, and she couldn't say she was ready.

But it came all too soon, "So, it seems one of us has had a miraculous recovery seemingly overnight." A loud gulp from her pristine mineral water filled glass. "I would say this is lucky news but then again, one less person would have given the rest of you a few more days worth of food. But nonetheless, this is truly a miracle. Don't you think Ms. Mead?"

Mead grunted and shot a dark look at Julie, to which she simply turned away. The only noise was the clattering of forks as each person took miniature bites of their cubes. Julie noticed there was an extra seat to the left of Venable- Stu would've sat there, but it was still set.

It was then she realized Langdon wasn't there. It made sense that he didn't want to eat with them, they were basically peasants compared to him. He was the current king of this domain, even if they all knew that Venable would rather die than not be in control. She wondered if their fearless leader was like this before the blast.

Surprisingly, Coco tried to start the conversation, "So, has anyone met with Langdon yet?" Gallant made an affirmative noise. "And how was it? C'mon, give us a heads up so we're ready."

But he shook his head and nibbled on another piece of cube, "I mean like, there isn't really a point to tell you cause you can't cheat the system so you may as well go in blind like I had to." Most of them nodded but Evie sneered, "You just don't want to help your fellow man. How cruel of you."

Julie watched his fork drop to hit the plate with a loud twang and turn his head sickeningly slow to shoot daggers at his grandmother. "Oh you'd know all about cruelty grandma."

Had something happened between Gallant and Evie that no one had clued her in on? The animosity inside this Outpost was hard to keep up with sometimes. But then again, maybe it was better off staying in the dark about some things. And it wasn't like she didn't already have enough on her own plate.

The biggest factor was as simple as a name: Langdon. He was something strange and new, yet being around him brought forth memories she didn't know she had. It brought forth a feeling in her gut that either made her sick or giddy- it was hard to tell. His arrival had simply brought along chaos; both good and bad.

She felt Emily prod her dangling hand, the not perched on the table holding the fork, and shoot her tight smile. But it was a slight pain in her gut that had a look of distraught covering her face. It was like knives piercing her inner gut and sliding into the lower abdomen.

"Is something wrong?" Venable asked this as if it was an inquiry about the weather and not a concern that bothered her in any way. So she simply grit her teeth and shook her head, staring down at the last bite of cube.

A thin sheen of sweat started to drip down her temple, a slight shake in her right leg alerting Timothy to her shaking, but he didn't know how to help. Maybe he could cause a distraction so everyone would have to leave, but what could he do…

"Hey Coco," Timothy made a show of pointing to his head, "Is that a spider in your hair?"

The commotion that ensued was enough for Emily and Coco to rush Julie out of the room and away from Venable's sight. The coughing had subsided but a steady stream of blood was leaving her nose.

Julie was so confused; what the hell was happening to her? This couldn't be real, she'd been healed- it wasn't supposed to be this way. It was a quick sweep above her mouth and the blood was gone, but the pain was still there. This wasn't just hunger, she knew hunger, this was something else.

Except the only thing she'd eaten were the cubes; The gelatin cubes that were filled with enough nutrients to keep her alive and not die or starvation. But this wasn't starvation; it just didn't hit you this fast. This was something _more. _

It was a harsh knock at the door that had Emily and Timothy turning to each other, knowing there was no were to hide, and they didn't even have a chance as the door harshly slid open, revealing Venable with a darkly colored sneer.

"Well, I can't say I'm surprised." Julie had been in the bathroom washing up and vomiting the very little waste in her stomach, and stumbled back at the sight of Venable in her room, cane in one hand, and the other- a plate with one cube.

"Get out." And the two teens fled, Emily shooting a sorry look at the girl Julie, knowing that Timothy and her couldn't get the information they needed tonight, and while they were mildly disappointed, no one deserved to be left alone with their masochistic ruler. Timothy shot her one last look as he slid the door closed.

It was tense inside the fairly large room, shadows from the fire reflecting on the walls; Venable near the door and Julie near the bathroom, facing off against one another. Except it was an unfair fight and Julie would undoubtedly lose.

Venable let out a breathy laugh, "You know, I was a receptionist before all this. And I was just like you; so pathetic."

A fire burned in Julie's gut- she couldn't tell between the pain and rage. "I'm not pathetic." And Venable started a low chuckle, covering her mouth like a schoolgirl before it turned into a vile loud chortle that echoed on the walls. It was minutes before she stopped and Julie had yet to move from her standing position by the bathroom, even as Venable moved forward to sit on the edge of the bed.

She sat so gracefully; "Open your eyes Ms. March."

_Open my eyes!_

"The difference between us is I earned my place here. In fact, Outpost 3 would be overrun and barely standing if I had never stepped foot in this decrepit underground chamber and saved you all from yourselves."

"Why are you even here? Is it because you just want to hear yourself talk?" Venable snorted and slid a hand into her dress pocket, pulling out a small pistol and pointing it straight at Julie.

"I'd watch how you speak to me, I can still very much kill you and have no blood on my hands." But Julie had a feeling she wasn't going to kill her, at least not now or with a gun.

"But there isn't a point to shooting me is there, not when you've been poisoning my food this entire time." Now that had Venable turning and meeting her hard gaze.

"Now that is a strong assumption Ms. March. One that could get you in trouble." It was no damn assumption and Julie knew it; the reason she'd become sick was Venable or maybe even Mead had been tampering with her food, making her sick enough to bleed.

It was a gamble and a stretch to throw such a heavy accusation at a woman who was holding a gun directly at her, but there was little doubt in Julie's mind that Venable was behind her bloody nose and shaking skin. "And if I was? What could you possibly do to me?"

"I could tell everyone and we both know exactly what they'd do to you." Julie had the upper hand now. "They'd throw you outside, let the canker puss monsters tear you apart. And even if you managed you get away, you wouldn't survive."

Venable's face grew red with rage and Julie knew her trigger finger was itching to take the shot, but she dropped the gun with a smirk. "I would like to see you try and take me down."

Venable used her cane to stand tall and tap it twice on the ground, the noise echoing through the room, before a few hard steps brought them nose to step.

Venable's voice was a whisper; "I'd like to see the whore who shares Langdon's bed rat me out as a traitor."

_What? _"What?"

Venable chuckled, as if there was a joke she was missing. "Ms. Mead came across some interesting photos of you Langdon." Julie grunted when the cane smashed against her bare foot, "I would think twice about threatening me Ms. March. I don't need a gun to kill you."

The two women glared at each other for a moment longer before Venable swiftly moved away, cane tapping against the ground as she walked to the door, turning back with a smile. "See you tomorrow at supper. Don't be late."

Her knees gave out at the same time the door shut. Wetness welled up and spilled down her cheeks; Life was just unbearable at this point. She just wished she were back home with her mom, laughing in Chloe's car as they listened to horrible early 2000's rock that they knew every word too. She wanted things to go back to normal.

It would be a complete and utter lie to say the thought of slitting her own throat, or wrists, hell, just smashing her head in the glass of the shower stall until it rained blood. It would end the pain, and she could see her mom again.

Her legs felt like iron weights that wanted to hold her down, but she lifted herself up and stumbled to the bathroom, nearly glassy eyes searching the large cream-colored room. The few steps to the sink were easy, and she gripped the edges of the sink, nails digging into the porcelain. In the mirror, she saw herself; her brown curls and glassy eyes made her let out a cheap laugh.

No one would miss this. She was rearing her body back when a hand landed on her forearm, stopping her for a moment. The mirror showed Julie and the man in black, his hand stopping her from a desperate act of desperation that made him want to scream.

She mumbled a solemn "I'm sorry" before continuing her previous act, smashing her face into the glass of the mirror- once, twice- , blood and shards raining down on the bathroom floor. Red ran into her eyes and pain was all she felt, a smile gracing her lips. It would be over soon.

Langdon watched through the eyes of the rubber man as his Julie, the Jewel of his heart bled on the bathroom floor. It was painful to see her like this; it made him want to burn the world all over again. But none of that mattered; he would never allow the one woman in his life that was destined to be with him simply _die. _


	10. Absolution

It was around 11:30 when Julie March found Chloe Bennett- and it wasn't like she'd been looking for her.

In fact, you could even say Julie had been trying to escape the cruel thoughts of her mother no doubt worrying as to were she was, the fact that she'd left Michael standing there with a heartbroken look on his face- she never wanted him to look like that again, and wherever the hell Chloe was. It turned out to be a simple answer.

Chloe had gone to visit her mother.

Julie always told people that Chloe's mother had just 'left' them alone, and to a certain extent, she had left them. But unbeknownst to Julie, Jamie Bennett had loved her daughter, her husband, her life… but she hadn't loved the dark evil magic that had flowed through her veins. The power at her fingertips had poisoned her mind, her soul, and she'd left her family behind.

The police had found her body- drug overdose of a massive combination- in a hotel room in Memphis. Mr. Bennett had wanted nothing to do with the woman who'd left him, but Chloe had begged to have her body buried here, in Clearview Cemetery. And so she was- Julie had come with Chloe a few times to visit the grave, but they hadn't in a few years.

Julie didn't have anyone buried there, so her being there seemed odd and strange, but it felt like the only place she could be alone. And she had been, until the small echoing sobs echoed through the air. It had made her pause as she walked along the gravestones, taking in the names of all the deceased people. There wasn't a single one she knew, but she knew those sobs.

"_Chloe?" _Her voice was a whisper, and the sobs immediately ceased to exist, like almost everything else in the Cemetery tonight. It was nearly impossible to see where they were coming from, as the moon was a clear waxing crescent, the normal glow missing from the night sky and leaving the air a pitch black.

She uttered the name again, ready to just start stumbling around the grassy area when a body crashed into her side, arms wrapping around her midsection and a face stuffing into her neck, tears wetting her shirt. It was easy to wrap her own arms around the torso that was holding her close- and only one girl in this town wore that perfume.

The two friends hugged in the cemetery, one sobbing and the other simply holding, not knowing what else to do; only offering the comfort of her arms. The grief of thinking Chloe was dead in a ditch somewhere was gone, but the worry was still there, so Julie leaned back and tried to peek at her friends face.

"Chloe? What happened to you?" There was no response, so she begged in a broken voice, "Please, Chloe… talk to me. It's me, Julie. I'm your friend"

But Chloe blubbered like a scared child, clutching her friend even closer as more tears fell. Julie was a bit lost, what was she supposed to do?

"I can help her."

A new voice echoed the Cemetery and Julie abruptly turned, forcing Chloe behind her as a new woman stood before them. This was a stranger; her long strawberry blonde hair was a stark difference from her black clothes. It reminded her of Madison- the stylish black was a new thing that Julie just didn't get.

"I know how to help your friend. But you have to let me Julie-"

"How do you know my name?" It was a valid question but Julie didn't know this woman.

"My name is Cordelia Goode." Cordelia strode forward, as if walking on clouds. "I know how to help Chloe. My mother did something awful to her and I need to right her wrongs. But you have to let me Julie."

Her friend trembled behind her back, and Julie found she couldn't say yes, even if this was Madison's Supreme Cordelia. "Prove that we can trust you, then I'll let you help."

And Cordelia smiled, as if this was something she'd dealt with before. Her pale hand rose in into the night air and a smoke like fog started to rise from the ground. "What's happening?" Cordelia didn't answer, just continued raising the smoke with a simple smile.

It surrounded the three women, filling their lungs in a way akin to coal filling a sock, but the only one who fell to her knees was Julie. The smoke was suffocating. She felt Chloe try and hold her up, but failed as Cordelia came closer and closer. It was a shock when her friends legs stood before her, bleary eyes watching as she took a protective stance.

Both women seemed to ignore Julie in their stand off.

"What did Fiona do to me?" Chloe's voice was absent of sniffles or tears, instead full of anger and betrayal, and Cordelia bloomed a frown.

"My mother tried to make you the next Supreme; she saw a strength in you that would easily overpower the rest of the Coven." Cordelia took a few steps closer, "She never thought that an untrained witch as yourself would grow as unhinged as you did, and she certainly never thought you would turn your back on your own Coven."

"_I didn't!"_ Chloe screamed so loud the trees shook. "You aren't my Coven! I don't even know what a Coven is but what reason did I have to stay?! To watch you all kill each other to become the strongest witch on the planet?" Her shoulders fell in a display of defeat. "I never wanted any of this."

Julie could finally breath as the smoke suddenly was gone from her lungs, air clearing up and allowing her to stand at Chloe's side. It was easier to see Cordelia at a closer distance, and Jessie March had always told her not to judge people by their first appearance, but Julie _didn't trust her. _

"I can help you Chloe." Her hand was offered, "You can transfer your magic to me. You'll never have to worry about it again."

Now that didn't seem like a bad trade off; Chloe would never have to worry about magic ever again and… and yeah that was it. But Julie had one question for Cordelia, "How did Fiona die?"

It was then the first real flicker of emotion crossed Cordelia's face, "For one Supreme to rise, the current one must fall." It was a bold statement, and the two teenagers faces dropped, both stepping back from the Supreme.

It was Chloe who uttered, "Did you kill your mother?"

"_You think you've won daughter? You think these petty little girls and your shitty house will ever make you Supreme?"_

_Fiona Goode was wrapped around a metal pole, ropes binding her with no chance of escaping. She'd known this was coming; Cordelia was always a goody two shoes, and after the last girl had fled- she'd been stronger than Fiona had imagined, too strong, and handing over her magic had been a mistake she would make again and again- it was no surprise that her daughter had turned the Coven against her. _

"_I believe that you are here today to pay for your crimes against this Coven. For cursing the witch Chloe Bennett, and transferring your powers to an unwilling host- is punished in this Coven. I, Cordelia Goode, sentence you to death by fire." _

"It was her time, even my mother knew that. But what my mother did to you was inexcusable, and I want to right her wrong. I can help you Chloe." Something was wrong to Julie; this woman had presumably killed her mother to become Queen of the Coven, and wanted to 'help' Chloe by taking her magic?

"Can you train her?" Chloe sharply turned with a furrowed brow. "Instead of just taking it, why can't you help her control it?"

Chloe butt in before Cordelia could answer, "Would you do that? Make me like you?" Cordelia's eyes darted between them, contemplating the situation. It was a lip bite and eye twitch later than Cordelia let her head dip lightly, "If you come to my school, I will help you. We already have a witch who's promise is as strong as yours."

Chloe's eyes lit up in a bright contagious smile, turning and hugging her friend. It was a sweet moment that was short lived as a gluttural moan of pain left Chloe's mouth, hands clutching her scalp in pain. Julie turned to Cordelia, "Help her!"

And with a nod she did, eyes closing and riding the young girls body of Fiona's nasty curse, eyeing the powerful old magic that flowed through those young veins. Cordelia thought, 'what a waste'.

But Chloe felt went it was gone, whatever it was, and stood with clear eyes for the first time in days. She turned to Cordelia, "What exactly did Fiona curse me with?"

"The curse of hunger that typically drives the host insane, but you were just strong enough Ms. Bennett." Cordelia held out a hand once more, "I do think you'll make an excellent addition to my Coven."

Chloe went to take her hand, but turned to her friend, "What about you?" and Julie gave a bright smile, "I'm not a witch, and it's not like I'm going anywhere." She pondered, "Just think of me as your Coven away from Coven."

It was a laugh shared between the two girls that brought forth a massive hug, cheeks pressing against one another, years of friendship shared between them resonating the in the air. There were mutual "I'll miss you's" thrown about, before they let go.

"You'll be here when I get back?"

Julie nodded and watched her friend take Cordelia's hand, disappearing from sight.

* * *

"You promise she'll be okay? I've met Madison and I mean I'd rather never see her again." Cordelia chuckled as she stood on the front steps of the March household- they'd just enjoyed a hearty meal of glazed turkey breast with green beans and a piece of pumpkin pie. Jessie March had calmed down after Cordelia had made up some bogus lie about being a school tutor, but her mother had eaten it up.

So here they stood, Julie in front of Cordelia, on the front porch.

"I think she'll do amazing. There is another student, Mallory, who also shows signs of being stronger than the other girls. They will get along well." Julie nodded, but shyly asked, "When will she be back?"

The Supreme thought for a moment, "A year or two. I have a feeling she won't need my help for long."

Julie had to tell her, "What about her dad? She…" It was still too hard to think about, but Cordelia waved it off. "I have fixed the wrongs that have been done." It wouldn't exactly be a surprise if witches could bring people back from the dead, and Julie hoped that's what she meant.

It was an awkward silence that ate up the time they stood there. "I guess I'll see you around." They both nodded and Cordelia held out her hand to be shook, and Julie had no reason not to. It was a jolt of electricity that went up the teenager's arm and behind her eyes-

_Ave Satanas_

Julie pulled back with wide eyes and Cordelia furrowed her brow in confusion, which in turn furrowed Julie's own brows; had she not seen that? Felt that? It made her heart up tic in a way, not understanding what it meant. It had been happening more and more, it _scared_ her-

"Absolute power corrupts absolutely Ms. March. You would do well to remember that." And then she was gone with the wind, her voice an echo that she hoped would never speak again.

It felt like a weight had been lifted off her chest when the door finally closed with a small noise, a smile gracing her face. "I'm goin to bed mom. Night!"

Hell, today had been stressful for her and stretched her arms and legs in a humorous fashion and she stumbled up the stairs. A faint response from her mom was good enough for her as she stomped into her room, letting the door slam shut and flopping on her bed—

Which was in fact, not as empty as she assumed it would because the large body shape that had been in her bed had let out a yelp at the sudden influx of weight. The body scrambled off the bed and hit the floor with a loud thunk, prompting Julie to run to the wall and turn on the lights.

It was easy to peek over the side of the bed, and give a single raised eyebrow to the blonde haired boy lying on her floor in a jumble of limbs. It took him a moment to right himself up, and she frowned at his bloodshot eyes. Had he been crying?

It was a simple walk around the bed and she was crouching at his side, hand on his shoulder. "Why are you crying?"

He said his answer as if it was as simple as why the sky was blue, "Because you hate me."

_What!?_ "What!?"

She crowded closer to him, "When did I ever say I hate you? Michael, talk to me." It was no easy feat to turn his face to her, watching those bloodshot blue eyes and messy blonde locks come into full view.

He sniffled, "You left me and-and…. I didn't know what I did wrong. I don't want to be alone, you can't leave like my grandma- you can't- you can't- _please don't_-"

His words halted as her soft lips met with his, his eyes widening as hers were closed, It felt like heaven to kiss her, and any sadness was washed away. She hated that she'd made him feel this way and pulled back to watch his wide eyes, "I'll never leave you Michael. I love you."

His voice cracked, "N-Never?"

She nodded and they kissed once more, paying no mind as he had them on the bed in seconds, his hands roaming every inch of her body he could. He hadn't touched her since that night- _so long ago_\- and craved to taste every inch of her again. Julie hadn't felt his hands in ages- _that one dream had seemed so real_\- but wanted to give him every part of her that he would take.

His hands were desperate in wanting to feel every inch of her skin against his lips; she was all smooth flesh and warm blood that he wouldn't mind taking just a taste. That was a thought for a later date as her wanton cries echoed the room.

She pulled back from his lips with wide eyes, before bursting into a fit of giggles, Michael chuckling along with her. They hoped her mom was asleep.

They positioned themselves on the bed, facing each other with hands clasped together and noses almost touching. Her voice was small and her eyes roamed his face with curiosity, "what are you Michael?

There were so many things he could say; I'm the Antichrist, _I'm a monster, _I'm a murderer, I'm nothing… But Julie made him feel like _something. _She made him so, so, so happy. And that's not to say Ms. Mead didn't make him happy too- she was like the mother he never had, but Julie made him feel like he wasn't so bad after all.

"I'm just me." That was enough of an answer for Julie, eskimo kissing as she drifted off to sleep, smiling at the feel of his safe arms around her. It was hard to think that everything was going to be okay, but with Michael by her side, maybe it could be.


End file.
